I Know You
by XFangirlingx
Summary: Miles Prower is in love with his close friend. This close friend happens to be Pop-Star Mina Mongoose, who has a boyfriend of her own. Not only is this boyfriend insane with jealousy, there is now a dangerous new enemy that wants something of a certain hero. What happens when a deadly secret gets in the way of true love?
1. Out of Reach

_**Chapter 1~ Out of Reach**_

 _-Tails' POV-_

 _It was a beautiful day. The sun was bright, the warm air was cooled by the crisp wind. I was in my workshop, working on my plane and jamming out to the newest hit from my very own close friend, Mina Mongoose. She had given me a copy of her CD as well as a digital download code, and I had listened to it everyday since. As I sang along to the lyrics of one of my personal favorites, "Don't Let MeGo", I painted my newest plane, The Omega Tornado. It was close to being done, and that made me sad in a way. I loved working on it, it took my mind of off things for awhile. It gave me some time to think about other things, instead of the fact that I..._

 _My thoughts were interrupted when a familiar voice said my name. "Tails?" I turned my head and my heart dropped, for it was in fact the one and only Mina. "Is that me?" she smirked as she pointed to my bluetooth speakers. I felt my face redden. "Uh, yeah" I said, turning to face my work. She giggled. "Aww, glad you enjoy my music so much. So how are you?" I finished touching up the blue steak across the plane. "I am doing pretty good, and how are you?" I answered. I stepped down from the ladder and cleaned my gloves with a rag. She sat down in a chair I had pulled out earlier that day. "I am doing amazing, thank you!" The enthusiasm in her voice made me smile. "So, I was planning on throwing a party at my place tomorrow night to get everyone together. Are you up for it?" This sounded great to me. I missed seeing everybody, and a party would be a lot of fun. "That actually sounds amazing to me," I said, and her face brightened. "Great, then it's settled! Tomorrow night.. we PARTY!" She saw that I was a little on edge, and she added "Hey, you deserve a break. You have been working really hard lately, a party will be great for you, I promise." I grinned. "Hehe, I guess," I said, and she stood up. "Well, I am going to head out. I have some stuff to do to get ready for it, but I'll catch you later, okay?" I gave her a thumbs up. "Yeah, sure," I responded. "I'll see you later Mina. Good luck with the preparation." She thanked me and started to head out. When she was about to open the door, she turned around and started back toward me. "I almost forgot!" she exclaimed, hugging me. "There, now goodbye!" She hurried out the door, letting it shut gently behind her. I stood there and looked at the door for a minute, still warm from the hug. If only she knew... I shook my thought out of my head and walked back to my plane. She was with someone, and she seemed happy. I couldn't tell her the truth.. or else she may hate me. I had to keep it inside and not let it show. Sometimes, it was hard to hide the fact that I was in love with her. The hardest part being that... it seemed that she was already out of my reach._

 _~Hya fellow fanatics!_

 _This is my first fic here on , and I am loving it here!_

 _I am a huge fan of TailsxMina. And I wanted to share my own creation of their young relationship with all of you fellow fans out there. I hope you enjoyed this first chapter, things will only get better! (And More Intense) I encourage comments/feedback/opinions!_

 _See you soon for chapter 2! What is the party going to bring for Tails and Mina? How will he deal with his growing feelings for his close friend?_


	2. Not-So Prince Charming

Chapter 2- Not-So Prince Charming

Mina's POV~

I hummed happily as I skipped home with a bag full of freshly-bought party goodies. I was actually excited for this! It had been awhile since I had seen my friends, and I was ready for a night of fun. There was just one problem- I had one day to set up an epic party. Not to mention the fact that I needed to be rehearsing. But hey- every pop star needed a break sometime.

When I reached my house, I unlocked my door and quickly headed inside. I groaned when I saw the abomination that my house was. Sheet music strewn everywhere, empty chip bags and soda cans, sound system in a tangled heap. No one ever called me neat and tidy. I threw my bags down let out a sigh. How was I going to clean all this up and decorate in time? As if it were an answer to my question, the doorbell rang. I gasped. _My calling?_ I skipped happily to the door and practically threw it open. "Have you come to- oh, hey Ash." The yellow mongoose stood in my doorway in his sleeveless black heavy metal shirt and ripped jeans. He had white jacket pulled over his shirt, the usual. "What's up, hon?"

I stood aside and let him pass, shutting the door. "What is this mess?" He kicked a pile of sheet music aside. "Well, Hah, about that," I smiled at him innocently. "When you get busy and it's late, you tend to uh... get a little messy?" He shook his head at me. "Ah Mina, Mina, Mina," he said, sitting on the sofa. I grabbed a trash bag and started picking up some of the mess. "So, Ash" I started, looking over at his slouching form, "I am throwing a big party tomorrow night. Everyone is coming!" He answered with a "Kay" and pulled out his phone. I picked up the last piece of trash and set the bag down. I tried again. "So... are you busy? I was wondering if you could come too... it'll be fun!" he was lost in his screen, but replied with a "Uh, yeah. Sure." I sighed. Same old Ash..

As I sorted through the music on the table, Ash stood up and started heading toward the door. "Gotta get going, busy night tonight. I'll see ya tomorrow for that party." I looked up. "Oh okay well I'll-" The door shut behind him. I stared at the door. "...Bye, Ash.." I looked back at my music. Sometimes, I wondered what had gone wrong between me and Ash. At first it was all going so well, and now...

I pushed the box of music behind the sound system, and kneeled down to untangle the cords. As I had started on the Mic cord, there was a knock at the door. _Do I really want to let him back in?_ I thought as I stood up and walked to the door. I took a deep breath. _Here it goes._ I opened the door, and a smile grew on my face at what I saw in front of me. "Hey Tails!"

Well, there we go! Chapter 2 for you! Now that you have had a little taste of Mina's side, we can start moving forward with the plot. So, now we have learned about Ash (A big a**, am I right?) He will play a big part in this story. But don't worry... he will get his ;) Please do review, and give any feedback! I'd appreciate if you also favorite so you can keep up-to-date with the newer chapters! See you all in chapter 3!


	3. If Only

Chapter 3- If Only

~Tails' POV~

"Hey, Tails!" Her enthusiasm made me smile. "Hey, Mina" I responded, "May I come in?" She stepped back and held open the door. "Well of course!" She said, and I walked past her. As she shut the door behind me, she informed me of the mess that she had just finished cleaning up. "I am glad you came after I was done, that was embarrassing." I laughed, and she glared at me. "What? Do you really expect me to keep this place spotless? I am a pop star for crying out loud!" She crossed her arms and pouted. She was cute when she was mad.

After I had settled and had myself a rootbeer, she asked "so, what made you decide to come here? I thought maybe you were busy today." I scratched my head. "Well, I finished the plane. And then I thought about the party, and how stressful putting it together would be. So I decided to come over and help you set up." at this, she brightened. "Aww, thank you Tails! I would love some help!" She went over to a bag on the floor and pulled out food, drinks, streamers, balloons, and more decorations. "I will start putting up balloons. And could you"- I walked over to her and took the streamers. "I got this," I grinned.

I used my twin tails to fly up toward the ceiling and hang the streamers. Mina blew up balloons and hung them around the house. I helped her with extra decorating. After we were done, we stepped back to admire our work. "It looks great!" Mina exclaimed, and I had to agree. "How about we take a break for tonight, it is getting late. Food can wait until tomorrow." She nodded in agreement. Yeah, you are right," she said. "I don't know about you, but I am exhausted. Want to get some sleep?" I answered with a readied "yes"and started out the door when Mina stopped me. "wait! Don't go, I will need you tomorrow. You can crash here if you would like." I turned to look at her. Of course I wanted to stay, and of course I would help her. "Well.. if you seriously don't mind, I will sleep on your couch for tonight." She shook her head. "Of course I don't mind. I will be right back." She ran upstairs, leaving me alone. I was sleeping at Mina's- How was I supposed to feel?

Mina came back with two pillows and a blanket, and set up the couch for a cozy sleep. "There you go," She said, and I thanked her. "Well, if you need anything, let me know. Goodnight, Tails." She shut off the light and went to her bedroom. "Goodnight, Mina" I answered, and I slipped under the blanket. It was surprisingly comfortable. Tomorrow would be another long day, but I was looking forward to spending it with her again. As my eyes started getting heavy, I sighed. _If only.. I could tell you how I feel..._ and with that I drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 3! Finally, some Tails and Mina interaction. Setting up the chapter as Tails helping Mina prepare for the party gave them some needed alone time. And there will be much, much more! Next chapter will focus on more preparations, and finally the party! Stay Tuned!


	4. Dance of Dreams

Chapter 4- Dance of Dreams

~Mina's POV~

I opened my eyes to see that it was morning.

Ah, a beautiful morning.

Today would be a nice, relaxing- and then it hit me.

Today was the party, and I still had a TON of work to do to prepare for it.

I guessed that lying in bed would not help me get anywhere, and after yawning and stretching, I slid out of my bed and walked to my closet.

I picked out the usual black tank top and blue shorts and slipped them on.

After I fixed my hair in the mirror, I headed downstairs.

When I got to the living room, Tails was sitting on the couch, looking at his phone.

"Good morning," he said, smiling up at me. "Sleep well?"

I sluggishly walked over to the couch and sat down beside him.

"Yeah, pretty well. I was feeling great too, until I thought about how much work we had to do today." He put his phone down and stood up.

"Eh, don't worry about it. We got this! I will make sure you don't get overworked."

He grinned and winked at me, and I shoved him playfully.

"Oh, shut up," I said, but I found myself grinning too.

He laughed and walked into the kitchen.

"Are you going to help me with the food today?" I yelled.

I heard him rummaging around in the cupboards.

"As long as I don't have to cook," He answered back.

"I suck at it."

I giggled. "Nope, I bought all junk food, so we're good."

He came back in with a bowl of cereal in his hands.

He handed it to me and sat back down.

"Why, thanks Tails," I said, smiling and taking a bite.

Coco Pebbles. He knew me so well.

As I ate my cereal, we discussed the party.

I told him that I was making cupcakes, cookies and punch by myself (so he wouldn't have to do any cooking) and I had bought chips and soda.

I explained that Charmy was going to be our DJ.

I was also planning on playing games (Truth or dare was always interesting).

He liked the sound of everything, I think we were both excited for this.  
After I had gotten up and cleaned my bowl, I took everything out of the bags.

Tails came in and pulled out the cake mix. "Shall we get started?"

I gave him a confused look.

He sighed and shook his head.

"I think I am capable of mixing things in a bowl, Mina".

I grinned. "If you are sure, just don't poison the cupcakes."

I stuck my tongue out at him.

Now he was the one pouting.

As Tails mixed the ingredients together in a bowl, I started on the cookies.

I made the cookie dough, throwing some extra chocolate chips in.

After putting the dough on the pan and throwing it in the oven, I helped Tails pour cake batter into the cupcake wrappers.

As I worked, I started to sing.

I really got into it and started dancing.

I slid a pan of cupcake batter into the oven, and as I shut the door I could feel Tails' eyes on me.

~Tails' POV~

Mina was singing and dancing while we made cupcakes.

And I couldn't help but listen and watch in awe.

She sounded so amazing.. and she was so-

She turned around and caught me looking at her.

I felt my face redden and turned quickly.

She stopped stood there for a moment, staring at me.

I was worried she was creeped out, until she suddenly smiled and started up again.

She moved toward me and took my hands.

She wanted me to dance with her.

She pulled me to the center of the room, and I fell under her spell and started moving with her.

As she sang one of my favorite songs of hers, "Dance of Dreams", I twirled her around and pulled her back into my arms.

We stayed like that for a moment.

She looked up at me, and I looked at her.

I could feel my heart beating like crazy. I leaned closer...

She giggled. "That was fun!" she said, and I pulled away.

"It was," I said, giving her a warm smile.

"I didn't realize you were such a good dancer."

I looked at her. "Well... hehe..." I couldn't find the words to say.

"I guess I'm okay... I was mostly following your steps."

She grinned. "Well," she said as she turned. "Anyway.. it is looking great!"

I scanned over the house, which actually turned out great, decorating wise.

"Yeah, it does. This party is going to be awesome!"

She nodded. "I hope so!"

I checked the time on my phone. 2:00.

"I'm going to head out now. I have some stuff to do before tonight."

She turned back to me. "Okay, I will see you later Tails!"

I gave her a thumbs up. "Yep, I'll see ya tonight."

I turned and was about to walk out the door when Mina said "Oh, and, thank you again Tails."

I stopped and turned back to face her. "Anytime, Mina" I said, smiling. "I love to help."

She winked. "We do make a great team!"

And with this, she walked upstairs. I closed the door behind me.

When I got outside, her words replayed in my head over and over again.

 _We do make a great team!_

She was right, we did.

And that was something I was proud of.

There is chapter four. Longer and full of TailsxMina!

Things are finally getting moving. Next chapter will be all about the party!

As you can see, Tails' feelings are getting stronger. The dancing scene was a chance to warm all our hearts with some romance.. and how about Tails almost slipping up and kissing her? Oops ;)

Please review and give any feedback/thoughts on this chapter

And stay tuned for more action! :)


	5. What You Wanted

Chapter 5- What You Wanted

Mina's POV

I opened the door to my closet. If I was going to host a party, I had to look my best. I pushed outfit after outfit out of the way; none of them were suiting my tastes today. As I started to lose hope, I suddenly stopped. I pulled out a long and silky red dress. This was the one that spoke to me. I slipped it on over my head and went over to the mirror to see how I looked. It still fit... and I actually looked pretty good.

I fixed up my hair in the mirror and made a few final finishing touches before going downstairs. I checked to make sure that everything was ready to go. As I was getting the DJ table ready, there was a knock on the door. "Coming!" I exclaimed as I raced to the door. I opened it to a few of my friends. Amy, Cream and Cheese, Silver and Blaze greeted me and filed inside. They all walked through the house in awe, complimenting me on my decorating. As they went to look around the bar, more people showed up. Soon, the house was full of old friends, some of who I hadn't talked to in forever. Everyone was here... well, almost everyone.

Tails' POV~

As I walked up to Mina's doorstep, already nervous. It wasn't that I couldn't handle parties... I just didn't know what to expect. I stood silently, staring at the door. Music was pounding, and I could hear talking and laughing. It sounded like there were a lot of people, which meant a lot of friends were here. It would be nice to talk to them again. _Just Standing here isn't an option_ , I thought to myself. Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door. After a moment, the door opened and I was greeted by Sonic.

"Hey Little Buddy!" He exclaimed, wrapping me up into a big bro hug. "Hi Sonic, so good to see you!" I said as he let me go. He gave me a big smile."Good to see ya too, bud. Glad you showed up! This party is awesome." I returned his smile. "Yeah, Mina did a great job." He stepped back. "Come in," he said, and I walked into the house. There were disco lights shining, the bar was full of old friends who were stuffing their faces with chips and root beer, and Charmy was manning the jukebox, jamming out to the disco music he had in. Everyone was here, having a great time.

I scanned the party, looking for any familiar faces. Knuckles, Vector, and Shadow were all at the bar, Amy and Cream and Cheese were sitting on the couch and giggling together, Charmy and Espio were playing an intense game of Twister with Silver and Blaze, and Rouge was watching the game with smirk on her face. I caught a glimpse of Mina as she walked into the kitchen from upstairs, and my heart jumped. She looked... so...

She looked at me and her face brightened. I quickly turned away to look at Sonic, who had just looked up from his phone. "Sorry, was checking something," he told me, turning it off and slipping it into his suit pocket. "I'm gonna go grab a drink. Enjoy the party, and see ya later bud!" he walked off, leaving me in the middle of the room. I looked back at Mina, who was heading toward me. "Tails!" she said, stopping in front of me and grinning. "I am so glad you came! The party is going great, but now that you are here it will only get better!" I blushed a little at that comment, but quickly hid it as she was looking at me. "Aw, thanks Mina. You did a great job with the place, looks like everyone is having a blast." She looked around. "You really think so?" she asked, smiling. I nodded. "Really Really," I answered, giving her a thumbs up. Just as I did, I heard the front door slam from across the room. I turned around and was met by Ash, who was looking around with a disgusted look on his face. Mina moved past me to reach him. "Hey, Ash!" she greeted, giving him a small smile. "I am glad you came, I was starting to think you wouldn't make it." He shrugged at her. "Yeah, I made it. I can see it really is a... "party" in here." I sighed quietly. Great, he was his good old self today. This would be fun.

Mina's POV

Everyone seemed to be having a good time. And I was happy that Ash and Tails were both here. But.. I could tell that Ash was in his usual mood. And I knew that him and Tails never really got along. I could tell this would be a long night. I decided to not let that get me down though as I started up another conversation. "So, now that you both are here, we can really get this party started!" I looked first at Tails, then at Ash. Neither of them seemed like they were in a party mood. After a moment of silence, Ash finally spoke. "I'm going to the bar, see you later babe." He walked off, leaving me and Tails alone together. I sighed. Typical Ash- he wanted to be by himself. Sometimes I wondered why I was dating him..

Tails interrupted my thoughts. "Did you want to go play some truth or dare?" I looked up at him, and he gave me a smile. Truth or Dare was always fun, especially with Amy and Shadow. They seemed to always come up with the best dares. I finally answered "Hell yeah!" and rushed over to tell the others.

Tails' POV

Everyone gathered in the center of the room. Truth or Dare was always intense with all of our friends playing, and I never knew what to expect. Mina motioned for me to join them, so I did. I sat down on the floor in between Sonic and Knuckles. "Okay," Mina said, sitting down beside Amy and crossing her legs. "I will go first, so get ready." She scanned the crowd of faces, and she settled on Sonic. "Sonic, Truth or Dare?" she asked with a smirk. Sonic thought for a moment. "Truth," he decided, and Mina shook her head. "Okay, what was the most embarrassing moment of your freedom-fighting career?" Sonic looked horrified, and the rest of us laughed. "Thanks a lot Mina," he muttered, following it with a story about how he accidentally ran in on Eggman in his underwear once.

After Sonic was finished humoring all of us, it was Amy's turn. She dared Shadow to kiss Rouge, who dared Knuckles to eat spicy Chili. The game continued on with everyone either having to do something stupid or admit a personal secret. When it was my turn, I dared Espio to let Charmy draw on his face, to which Charmy happily obliged. I was having fun, it felt good to laugh with my friends again.

Mina's POV

After everyone had made me laugh, it was finally my turn again. I scanned everyone, looking for my next victim. I decided to ask Tails, who I hadn't heard from yet. "Tails, Truth or Dare?" He chose truth, and I thought hard about my question. What would be a good question to ask Tails? … Finally, it hit me. I was very curious, so I asked a defining question. "Tails," I asked, looking him in the eyes, "Who do you have a crush on?"

Tails' POV

"Tails.. Who do you have a crush on?" My heart sunk at her words. I felt a little dizzy. What was I supposed to say? I couldn't tell her that she was who I liked.. not when she had a boyfriend! She stared into my eyes, waiting for my answer. I didn't know what to do..

Mina's POV

When I asked the question, Tails was silent. I could see the discomfort in his face. Why was he so nervous? I opened my mouth to ask if he was okay, but was interupted when Ash took my hand and pulled me up. "A-Ash?" I asked him, as he led me to the dance floor in front of the stereo. He snapped at Charmy to change the song, to which Charmy quickly obeyed. After the song was changed to a disco song, he started to dance, leading me along. My confusion turned to a smile as I joined him. "Time to jam, everybody!" I exclaimed, forgetting about the game of Truth or Dare. Everyone stood up and joined us on the dance floor, dancing the night away.

Tails' POV

As Ash dragged Mina away, he gave me a blood chilling glare. I stared back at him, trying to figure out where his anger was coming from. Did he know? That I had feelings for his girlfriend... I stood up and walked toward the bar, I needed something to drink. I poured myself a root beer (I never drank alcohol) and sat down, sipping away. I saw that Sonic was dancing with Amy, who had a giant smile on her face. Shadow and Rouge were sharing a bowl of chips, standing away from the dance floor. Knuckles was enjoying a grape soda, and Cream and Cheese were dancing beside Silver and Blaze. I looked to Mina, who was dancing with Ash. She looked... happy. Even with.. him. No matter how he was with her, she was still so sweet that she always gave him a chance...

I stood up, walking over to the trash can and throwing my plastic cup away. I was tired and wanted to go home, I had had enough partying for one night. I caught Mina, who had just walked into the kitchen to grab herself a drink. "Hey, I'm going home." She turned around. "Awww, okay Tails, thank you for coming!" I smiled. "Of course, thanks for having me. The party was awesome." She grinned. "I couldn't have done it without you!" she hugged me again, making me warm inside. "Goodnight Tails. Hope you had fun!" I let go of her. "I did," I said, heading out the door. "Enjoy the rest of the party, Mina." I walked out, closing the door behind me.

I walked home slowly. It was a dark night, the moon was hidden. Suddenly, I heard a crunching noise behind me. I turned around, but all I could see was darkness. Turning back around and continuing on my way, I was sure to be quiet so I could listen. Soon, the sound of footsteps came from behind me as if someone were following me. Next thing I knew, someone had ahold of me, trying to wrestle me to the ground. By instinct, I wrapped my Tails around my attacker and threw them to the ground. They jumped up quickly, shoving me to the ground. They had their hands on either side of me, leaning over me. "That was easy," a voice spoke, and I instantly recognized it. Ash laughed tauntingly. "I thought it would take more than that to get you down, but it turns out you are just a weak child."

I took a deep breath, trying to sit up. "Ash, please let me- oof!" a hard blow to my face sent me back to the ground. He laughed again. "Shut up, fox, before I mess you up even more." He got in my face, I could see the anger in his eyes. "You think you can take her from me, huh?" I could smell the alcohol on his breath. "Why did you have to come, fox? Why couldn't you just mind your own business instead of lurking around her house, at her stupid little "party"? Huh, why didn't you just stay away!" He was rambling, I could tell that he wasn't thinking straight, no matter how much he hated me. "What have you been telling her about me? Trying to get her away from me so she can be with you, or what? Answer me, you idiot! Answer me!" I decided to try and calm him down.

"Ash, you aren't thinking straight," I started, and I could already tell it was a mistake. "You are drunk, Ash, you need to calm down-" his fist collided with my mouth again. "You don't tell me to calm down! I don't need to calm down! Who do you think you are, you little rat, telling me to "calm DOWN!" He punched me in the nose, sending a sharp pain through my head. I tasted blood. "Well, look at this," he snarled, spitting on me. "You look like you are in pain.. here, let me help." He stood up and stepped on one of my twin tails, sending pain through it and up to my back. I could barely stifle my scream, I felt some of the bones cracking beneath his boot. He laughed again at my pain, this was a show to him. Finally, he took his foot away. "Stay.. away... from.. Mina.." he stuttered, stumbling toward my head. "Next time.. I will kill you." With those words, he walked away, leaving me crippled on the ground. I felt like dying, the pain was unbearable. As I closed my eyes, however, I thought of Mina. And something about the thought gave me the strength to open my eyes. I slowly lifted myself off of the cold ground, biting my lip through the pain. When I was on my feet, I slowly limped for my house, leaving behind blood, leaving behind the empty, broken beer bottle, leaving behind my weak self who lay there and took the pain, not defending myself to the drunk mongoose who hated my guts. And now, he had gotten his way. He got to watch me suffer there in front of him on the ground from the pain he caused me himself, he got to laugh as I helplessly and silently begged him to stop. I gave him what he wanted- I let him win. And that was one thing that I never wanted.

Hey, Everyone! I'ma Back!

First of all. You have NO idea how sorry I am for abandoning you all for so long. I have been so busy the last month with the end of school and everything else that I had kind of put this story aside for awhile. When I realized how long it had been, I freaked. "Better get a new chapter out," my brain kept telling me, and finally... I did it! An extra long one too, to make up for all that lost time..

MANY things happened in this chapter, how exciting! Finally getting some action, suspense, pain... the Ash thing was probably a little dark and scary, but don't fret- it'll only get better! I have this whole story planned out..

From now on, updates will be frequent, and that is a promise! I will not abandon you all again, thank you for your patience and loyalty.. don't think I forgot my promise ;)

I hope this chapter was enjoyed by everyone, it really set up the plot. From now on, more stuff will be happening!

Thank you, as always, for reading. Stay tuned for next chapter, make sure to review/Favorite, please!

~Fangirling~


	6. Suspicions

Chapter 6- Suspicions

Mina's POV

I opened my eyes and sat up. I was in the living room, the sunlight coming through the window blinding me. _Why am I on the couch?_ I asked myself.. and then it hit me. After everyone had left last night and I had cleaned up the last of the mess from the party, I had passed out on the sofa. I guessed I had danced myself to extreme exhaustion.

I slid off of the couch and stumbled to the kitchen. Searching the cupboards, I decided on a breakfast of chocolate-chip cookies and milk... very healthy. As I munched on dunked cookies, I looked at the news on my phone. It was all the same boring thing, companies being sued, stores having sales... but one article made me drop my cookie. _A Woman Hospitalized For Literally Having The Life Sucked Out Of Her._ No one knew what happened,according to the author the woman was normal just minutes before. What could have sucked someones energy in minutes? ..

After I finished my breakfast, I looked deeper into the news article. Apparently there had been earlier reports of the same issue. People had lost control of their own minds and bodies and have woken up in the hospital, completely lifeless. No one had any idea what or who was causing it..

I put my phone down on the table; I didn't want to read about it anymore. Honestly, I didn't want to be alone, either. _I wonder what Tails is doing today,_ I thought to myself, putting my trust back into my phone and picking it back up. I sent a text to him, asking him if he was busy. When he replied back with _No_ , I answered with _Cool, is it okay if I come to your place for a bit?_ After getting an answer of _of course,_ I jumped up and headed toward my room to change. I had nothing else to do, and it would be nice to hang out with Tails again.

After I was presentable, I locked my door behind me and was on my way. I took the longer way to his house so I could walk through the peaceful emerald field. Emerald Field was a long, green, beautiful field of grass covered in many bright flowers and warm sunshine. There were butterflies and chao floating around. As I walked, I closed my eyes. A cool breeze hit my face, enclosing it in a dreamy haze that made me want to sleep right there. I decided that from there on out, I would write my songs in that very field.

My dream state was interrupted by a buzzing in my back pocket. I pulled out my phone and read the text. It was from Ash.

 _Ash: You never payed me my share for that last album._

Rolling my eyes, I replied:

 _Sorry, forgot. I will give you half of the money next time I see you. How are you?_

I sighed at his answer.

 _Ash: Meh. Make sure I get that money, I won't be patient for long. Peace._

Jeez, sometimes, Ash was an a-

I got another text from him that read:

 _Hey girl, we still on for tonight?_

Confused, I answered back:

 _What are you talking about?_

I didn't remember planning anything with Ash for tonight.

 _Ash: Sorry, must have been thinkin' of another day. Later._

I stared at the text for a minute. It felt odd... but I brushed it off as I put my phone back in my pocket and walked forward to Tails' workshop.

The workshop was off on a beach, basically on its own island. It was beautiful, peaceful.. all you could hear was the sound of water splashing up onto the sand. Beside Tails' giant garage was a modest spruce- wood workshop, which also had a tree house- type- thing connected to it. It was very nice and cozy. As I approached the door and knocked, I could hear Tails' voice yell "come in!" I opened the door and closed it behind me. By the distance of his voice, I figured Tails was in his workshop, so I headed in there first. He was, in fact, in there, working on his plane (like usual). He was facing away from me, but he still greeted me with a "Good Morning, Mina," and a "How are you doing today?"

"Morning, Tails, and I am great thank you!" I smiled at his politeness. "And Tails, how are you on this fine morning? Busy, as usual?" He stopped working and grabbed a rag, wiping off his hands. "Well," he started, wiping his face with the rag, "I am doing okay, I guess. Pretty busy, but glad you are so great." I could hear something... off in his voice. He didn't sound as optimistic as usual. "Is everything okay?" I questioned, and he sighed. "Yeah.." he said, finally turning to face me. "Everything is as fine as it could be right now."

My jaw dropped at the sight in front of me, a feeling of nausea forming in the pit of my stomach. Tails' face was... mutilated. Both of his eyes were bruised, his nose looked as if It had to be snapped back into place, his face was covered in blood stains, scratches and bruises... it was horrifying.

"Oh My God, Tails!" I exclaimed, rushing forward. I could see the sadness in his eyes.. he was not comfortable with me staring at his injuries. "You... look... horrible! What in the hell happened to you?!" He was nervous, scratching the back of his head and not meeting my eyes. "Well..." He started, unsure of what to say next. "I... had an accident."

Tails' POV

I didn't tell her. I didn't want to ruin her relationship with Ash, and if she turned out not to believe me, I didn't want our relationship ruined. She couldn't know what really went down last night..

"Tails, I can't... I can't believe you are still standing!" she was close now, carefully assessing my injuries with an uncomfortable look on her face. "Poor thing.. that must be very painful.." I frowned. "I.. didn't really want you to see my like this." She stepped back, crossing her arms and glaring at me. "Seriously?" she said, and I knew I had made a mistake. "You were just going to hide it from me? Tails, I'd rather know about it so I could check up on you and make sure you are okay! What if something happened and I didn't know about this so I couldn't help you!" I sighed, looking down. "Well... I can take care of myself. I don't want you worrying about me." She stood her ground and kept her glare for a moment, before resigning into a laugh. "You dummy," she said, putting her hand on my shoulder. I looked up at her, she was smiling at me. "I worry because I care about you, I like worrying, it gives me a chance to remember that you are hurting and that I need to keep an eye on you." We stayed how we were, looking to each other for the answer.

Finally, she stepped away and walked over to the table. Taking a seat, she asked "So, have you seen those articles on the mysterious life-eating thing?" I took a seat beside her. "Yeah, I have," I started, cleaning my wrench as I spoke. "They have no idea what it is.. it can't be identified by any hospital machines.

She wrapped her arms around herself. "To be honest, the stories gave me the creeps. What if.. whatever it is.. spreads and starts affecting everyone in Mobius!" Her fears were mine exactly. I shook my head. "Hopefully it is all figured out soon.. before-" I stopped. I could see the fear in Mina's face.. I couldn't go on, I was scaring her. "I'm sorry, Mina.." She shook it off. "No, It's okay... I just.. I don't know. Not something I like to talk about, you know? I just want it all figured out so we can go back to normal." I nodded at her. "Yeah... me too." I said, staring off into the distance in thought. Something was eating away at me.. something told me that this wasn't just a random occurrence or disease. I had the feeling that it was more... like an evil plan. Maybe.. the evil that we had rid of so long ago had returned. Or maybe a new evil.. it didn't matter, though. I knew that, no matter what it was, the freedom fighters would figure it out. We would find a way to fix it, and then everything would be okay. Just like the old days.

Chapter 6. Wasn't much this time around, just some Tails and Mina time. More action will be coming soon for all you suspense lovers out there =)

As if you couldn't tell, I don't like to come out and say what is going to happen in the future of the story, but I do like to plant tiny hints in there for curious theorists to find! Also, I like to slowly show Mina and Tails' emotions, and their reactions toward each other ;)

More will come soon! Hope you enjoyed, stay tuned for chapter 7!

Good Night!


	7. Nightmare

Chapter 7- Nightmare

Overview

Over the last 2 days, over 20 mobians had had the life sucked out of them. People were losing control of their bodies, and when they were awakened from their daze it had been apparent that there was no energy left in them. Doctors were starting to think it was an endemic disease, and had no cure. There was one warning sign, however, that may have been the start of the problem. Out of every patient with these problems had come a dark entity, disappearing into thin air. Those familiar with evil, such as the freedon-fighters, were starting to theorize that this was much more than a sickness... maybe it was a new evil.

…

They were so stubborn, these lifeforms. Easy to weaken as well. They never suspected a thing besides a non-alive entity, and as soon as one goes down the rest soon follow. I had found a new raging appatite for the life power and energy of these lifeforms.. I found that every time I imbibed more life power I became stronger and stronger. Soon, I would have enough power to take over this pathetic planet and turn it into my own. Before I could do this, though, I had to find an energy so powerful that it would be enough to convert lifeforms into dark entities, control their every move..

I had discovered a new host while drifting through the spiritverse. He was a retired hero.. used to fight evil before all evil was put to rest. He was strong, mentally and physically, with an incredible IQ. He also had a unique ability..

I detected that he had chaos in his body, which could have been an obstacle for me. But, if I could overcome it, then I could use the chaos energy to my advantage... this could be the answer I was looking for... this could be the end of my search and the beginning of my rule.

Mina's POV

As I sat there, thinking hard about life, I suddenly remembered my career. "So, Tails!" I exclaimed, and he looked over at me, his eyes wide. "Oops, sorry, didn't mean to startle you. Anyway, I actually forgot to tell you yesterday with the party in all, but I will be performing tomorrow night in town square! And of course, you are invited!" He smiled. "Awesome!"he said, leaning forward in his chair. "It will be great hearing you sing again. Have any new songs this time around?" I nodded. "Sure do," I started, giving him a thumbs up. "Fresh out-of-the-oven lyrics with a smooth beat, I will be performing it live tomorrow for all eyes to see." This made him happy. "I can't wait to hear them," he said. "I also can't wait to hear you sing live again." I grinned. "Well," I said, standing up and pulling my song journal out of my back pocket, "How would you feel about getting a special sneak peek of one of the new ones?"

Tails' POV

I stared at her, surprised. She was going to sing her newest song.. for me? I wanted to hear her sing again... her voice was so.. amazing. She waited for my answer patiently. Me, being the awesome charmer that I was, answered with an "uhhhmmm..." she giggled and flipped through the pages of her book. "Well, I... would love to!" I said, pulling out my chair to face her and sitting down. She stopped on a page. "Okay then," she said, putting the book down and preparing herself. "Here goes nothing. I call this one "Hearts Connected". She took a deep breath and began singing.

The lyrics flowed together beautifully, each one full of meaning. It told the story of the heart and soul of two lovers being inseparable, each sharing only one. To me, the words meant everything... it told of true love... and the way her voice told the story made it that much better...

When she finished the song, she stood in place. She looked into my eyes, waiting for my thoughts. I stared back in awe. Finally, I brought myself to stand up. "Mina..." I started, walking toward her slowly. "That... was... amazing! That was the most beautiful song I have ever heard!" Her face perked up, a giant smile forming on her face. "You really think so?" she exclaimed, trying to catch her breath. I stopped in front of her, taking her hand. "I know so. That was truly wonderful, Mina." She happily squeezed my hand and let go, excited for her accomplishment. "Yay! Thank you so much Tails, I am glad you like it!" She skipped away happily, and I watched with a smile. She was cute when she was excited. She grabbed her songbook and turned to face me. "Well, I better be going, I have so much to do before tomorrow!" I nodded. "Yeah, you do. You should probably get started, so you can be all rested up to sing your heart out tomorrow." She headed toward the door. "Yeppity yep, you are right. Thank you again for listening to my song, Tails. I will see you tomorrow! Have a great day!" And with that, she rushed out. I sighed, thinking of her newest single. I wished even more that I could explain how I felt about her... I decided to stop standing around and go take a nice walk, I hadn't had one of those in awhile. It would be nice to take my mind off of things, and get some exercise at the same time. I headed out the front door, ready for a nice break from working on airplanes.

I walked through Metropolis, taking in the site of the busy city. Stores were full of shoppers looking for a good deal, children carrying around giant lollipops and cookies from food stands. Everything seemed positively normal, considering there were people being hospitalized for unknown occurrences. It was strange...

I stopped by a smoothie truck and got myself a drink. I walked through the back allies, sipping at my strawberry smoothie. I felt a buzz from my phone and looked at the text I had received from Mina. It read: _The concert is at 6 tomorrow, forgot to tell ya!_ I smiled and replied _Alright, I'll be there, probably even earlier. See you then._ I stopped texting and quickly put my phone away as I heard a strange sound around me. Standing still, I listened for another sign that something was following me. Something in my brain was telling me that it wasn't a certain a-hole mongoose-

I suddenly was met with a sharp pain in my chest. I let go of my cup and grabbed my chest, dropping to my knees. The cup hit the ground and smoothie flew everywhere. I was panicking, my breathing heavy and quick. I couldn't feel my body, and I had no control of it...

"Damnit!" I shouted in pain as something expanded beside my heart. I could feel myself getting tired, I didn't even want to hold myself up any longer...

Suddenly, I felt a rush of energy, and I stood up. My sight was highlighted in dark red, and I felt... angry. My fist almost came in contact with the wall, but suddenly I became aware of my actions and pulled my arm back. "What the Hell?..." I asked aloud, looking down at my hands and up at the building. I saw my reflection in the window. There was a dark aura around my body, and my eyes were glowing red. What was happening?...

Suddenly, it hit me. Loss of energy, pain, not able to control actions... they were the symptoms from the news articles.

I had been put into the nightmare.

Wa-La! Mina sang her new song, Tails got a smoothie and The Evil Entity Known for now as (…) has hatched an evil plan. And Tails? He now has a big problem on his hands. How will this affect him? Why did he have a different reaction that everyone else who was affected? Well... that will all be explained, I promise :)

Any Questions, Comments, Feedback for this story? Please, feel free to contact me!

Next chapter will be out soon- for now, tell me your predictions/opinions in the comments!

I hope you enjoyed, see you all soon!

~Fangirling


	8. Facing the Music

Chapter 8- Facing the Music

Mina's POV

Today was concert day. I would have been pumped, if it weren't for the fact that my nerves were going crazy, which was normal for a big performance day. My day plan was rehearsing until call time, helping set up (even though my crew insisted on doing it themselves) and finding Ash so he could work his manager magic. Today was going to be a long one, but I was used to it.

I decided to head to town to grab a coffee from the cafe to kick off my morning. As I walked the quiet streets, I noticed that there were advertisements all over the place about my performance tonight. It hyped me up- but knowing that so many people were counting on me also had an opposite effect.

I walked into the cafe and was instantly met by a bunch of fans who wanted pictures with me. After I posed for many selfies and handed out some autographs to adorable little kids, I finally got to order a coffee. I walked out onto the street with my cappuccino, heading for the park to set up. By the time I got there, I saw that the crew were just now starting. "Heyyyy Mina!" I was greeted by the guitarist of my back-up band, Chuck. "What's up, Chuck" I replied, joining him and the others on stage. I helped Jet pull out his drum set and Mack set up the microphones, finishing the setup and leaving us no more work to do. What was a nervous pop-star mongoose supposed to do at this moment? It was time to rehearse until I dropped. And that was what my recording studio was for.

I switched on the lights in the studio and was met with the usual- messy stacks of sheet music, tangled mic cords- basically the same as my house. The best part about it was the peace and quiet. It was the best place for rehearsing, so I pulled out a chair and made myself comfortable. I started with my newest song first, moving down to my oldest. They sounded okay to me and I felt pretty confident about the lyrics, but not about performing. It always gave me anxiety..

Tails' POV

After running some tests on myself in my workshop, I concluded that I had been possessed by a dark soul of some kind. I could feel a different energy inside of me. Obviously, I could not stay this way, so I decided to try to find out how to get rid of it. Just as I was planning the rest of the day of experiments, I suddenly remembered what today was. Mina's Concert. Which meant... I would have to keep whatever this was under control to keep thousands of people safe. I looked at myself in the mirror. I couldn't see anything different about myself... I guessed that I would be okay to go out. As long as I didn't trigger it again...

I cleaned up and got ready to leave, checking again for any last-minute giveaways. I would have to keep my dark side secret from everyone. Even the one I trusted most. As I headed to the square, I texted my friends. First, I sent Sonic a text, asking when he'd be coming. He replied that he would be there a few minutes before it started. Next, I texted Amy, asking her if she wanted to get together and do something afterwards. She texted me back that everyone was going to hang out at her place, and asked if I wanted to come. _Well heck yeah,_ I answered, and she sent me back the teasing emogie. I sighed, thinking about how much work would go into hiding my secret from everyone.

Mina's POV

After going through all of my songs a dozen times, I checked my phone. Amy texted me to let me know that everyone was getting together at her house, and I smiled. That would be fun. I let her know I'd be there and put my phone down. Kicking back, I closed my eyes. Tonight would be a long night.. a very long night. Singing for trusting fans that were counting on me, not to mention my friends. Dealing with Ash, who would be in a bad mood because of all of the so called "work" he had to do to prepare me for this day. (Which in reality was just him signing a few papers). Oh Ash... quite.. the... charmer...

A loud knock at the door woke me up. I guessed I had fallen asleep, oops. I mumbled "just a minute" and stumbled toward the door. It was Chuck. "It's almost time, Mina. You need to get yourself in that dressing room and get ready for your moment to shine! I groaned. "Performing time already? Oh Jeez... Okay, I'll get over there. Thanks Chuck." He walked away and I followed, heading to my dressing room and closing the door behind me. _Time to roll,_ I thought to myself.

Tails' POV

By the time I got to Town Square, it was packed. Thousands of Mobians were taking their seats in front of the stage, including some familiar faces. Knuckles, Rouge, Shadow, Cream, Cheese, Amy, Blaze and Silver were all sitting together. Sonic raced up to me. "Hey buddy!" he exclaimed, leading me to the seat they saved for me. "Hey, Sonic," I said, following him. When I reached my seat, everyone greeted me. After I chatted with them for a moment, I decided to visit Mina in her dressing room before she went on stage. I told everyone I would return and walked behind the stage.

Mina's POV

I heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" I said, and Tails opened the door. "Oh, Heya Tails!" I exclaimed, fixing my hair in the mirror. "I was hoping you would come visit me before I went on." In the mirror I could see he was smiling at me. "Well of course, I had to come wish you luck before your big moment. Are you ready?" I sighed, putting down my curling brush and walking over to him. "Not really," I said, and he frowned. "Hey, you are going to do great like always. Also, you look nice." I blushed. Why, I had no idea. I gave him a big hug. "Thank you, Tails," I said, squeezing him. "I will try my best, knowing you are out there cheering me on." He answered "Yep, I am your biggest fan." I let go and pulled back from him. His face was looking better today, but there were still signs there. "Hey, how do you feel today?" His hand went to his face. "Well," he said, rubbing his chin, "I'm fine, thank you." I still wondered how it happened... but I decided to leave it be.

When it was time to go on stage, I gave Tails one final glance. He gave me a thumbs up for reassurance, and I opened the door. As I walked onto the stage, everyone started cheering. My heart was beating fast, but I took a deep breath to slow it down. I smiled and waved to everyone. It was time to do this. No backing out now.

Tails' POV

Mina was starting her performance off with none other than "Don't Let Me Go", and she sounded amazing as always. I could tell that she was nervous, but she pushed it to the back of her mind as she sang her heart out for her fans. She truly was awesome.

Mina's POV

When I finished my first song, I stood there catching my breath. The crowd went wild, and it made me happy to hear them chant my name. I smiled and got back out there, hyping up the crowd. It was time to get real.

Tails' POV

"Heya, how is everyone doing out there tonight?" Mina's question made the crowd crazy, as people shouted her name and cheered over and over again. "So, this next song is actually a new one that I wrote recently about someone very special to me. I call this one "Hearts Connected." Everyone went wild. She caught my eye, and I smiled. She smiled back and started singing. As she sang, I thought about the day she sang it for me. I remember how happy it made me... and how her voice formed the story so beautifully. Just as she was now.

Mina sang on, finishing the concert with passion and perseverance. After the final song, she finished off with a speech that made everyone smile. "People of Mobius," she began, wiping her forehead and smiling at everyone in the crowd. "Thank you all. Not only for coming out tonight, but for your continuous love and support for me, and for each other. Thank you for making Mobius a great place to live.. and just remember, any hardships we go through, we will do it together. We will make it through together. We. Are. Family!" Mina's devoted fans cheered her off the stage more than ever, and I stood up and clapped for her, joining the chant of her name. She deserved all of this... She deserved the world.

After I said goodbye to my friends and told them I'd stop by later to celebrate, I went to find Mina. I had to talk to her about her amazing performance. Suddenly, I remembered my problem. I had forgotten about it as it hadn't caused me any trouble all day. It was strange... I figured I would have started having the symptoms of the other victims but... it was like there was something keeping the soul from fully taking my energy.

Mina's POV

It was amazing. Finishing a performance and getting that kind of applause.. it made me feel amazing. I went to find Ash, I had to talk to him. I hadn't seen him all night, but I was sure he was there. As I walked backstage toward my dressing room, I thought about all of the amazing feelings I had on that stage. I really felt connected to everyone. It really did feel like the Mobians were all a big family...

I reached my dressing room, and the door was cracked. _That's weird,_ I thought to myself. I remembered leaving it open when I went on stage. I figured someone had come back to get something and brushed it off. I opened the door all the way, and the sight before me made my heart drop, as well as my jaw. There was a girl, another Mongoose with bright pink hair who I'd never seen before. She was making out with another Mongoose, who so happened to be an ass with jet black hair- Ash. I felt a lump in my throat as my eyes filled with tears. Neither of them noticed me as I shut the door and ran away. Ran away from my cheating boyfriend. Ran away from my sorrow. Ran away from my rage.

Chapter 8... and wow, that was hard to write. Poor Mina, she learned the dark truth about her a-hole boyfriend the hard way. But what about the dark secret of Tails? Well, next chapter may be your answer for that ;)

I know this chapter was harsh, I mean.. Mina had just walked away from the most amazing moment of her life into a horrifying truth that she couldn't turn her back on. This. Starts. Now.

Please Please, Tell me what you think. ANY Comments, Feedback, Thoughts, send me a message!

It helps me write a better story for you guys. Next chapter will be out soon, so stay tuned and stick with me!

~Fangirling


	9. Self-Control

Chapter 9- Self'-Control

Tails' POV

I was about to give up my search for Mina when I finally caught sight of her in the darkness. She was sitting on a bench, her head down. When she noticed me walking toward her, she lifted her head up. It looked like she was wiping her face off on the back of her arm. "Mina, you did amazing!" I stopped in front of her, noticing that she didn't look happy. "Heh," she sniffed, looking up at me. "Thank you, Tails." I frowned. Something was wrong.

"Are you okay?" I asked, offering my hand to help her up. She took it and stood up, shaking off her mood. "Y-yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine!" I could tell she was forcing her excitement. "That was awesome, I felt amazing up there. All of those people really cheering me on as I sang with everything I had. I had so much fun!" I gave her a smile. "You deserved it. You sounded amazing, performed amazingly... you really spoke to those people with your words there at the end. I know you really spoke to me." She skipped passed me. "And I meant every word too. I am so glad it really hit home!" Mina turned back to me. "Thank you Tails," she added, grinning. I grinned back. "Of course," I said. "Every word is true."

Mina's POV

I couldn't tell him. I knew how he would feel about it, and I didn't want to give him anything to be worried or upset about. I would just have to grin and bear it.. as hard as that would be.

Tails and I decided to head for Amy's house. I was thankful that she was hosting this, but at the same time it would be hard to have fun after what I had just witnessed. I would do it for the sake of all of my friends, though. I didn't want them to be a part of Ash's selfishness and a-holery.

While we walked, both of us were pretty quiet. I looked up at Tails to see that his face showed he was preoccupied. I wondered what he was thinking about..

Tails' POV

My thoughts were starting to change. I could feel them being influenced by whatever was inside of me. As long as I could keep my actions under control, no one would know. I would have a nice night with my friends, go home, and stay up for the remaining part of the night to try and fix this.

When we reached Amy's house, I knocked on the door. Amy answered the door. "Hey you two, come on in!" she exclaimed, standing aside. We headed inside and were greeted by many "Congrats!" and "Wonderful job"s to Mina. I smiled as she took everyone's congratulations modestly. After the parade of compliments, we made our way to Amy's living room and sat down with everyone. Amy served us both a soda and a cookie that she made (which were the best in the world) as we talked and laughed with everyone.

Mina's POV

I still didn't feel so great. Sure, I was having fun, but I couldn't get the image of Ash kissing the other girl out of my mind... and it was crushing me slowly. As Tails was busy talking with Sonic and Amy and the others were in an intense game of Would You Rather, I sneaked away to the bathroom. I closed the door quietly behind me and rushed over to the sink, I felt like I was going to be sick. After the feeling passed, I looked up at my reflection in the mirror. _What happened... what made him decide that I wasn't good enough?_ The thought of how he had been to me the last few months was the final straw, and I couldn't stop the tears from coming. I stood there, crying over the sink over some jerk who I had liked, some jerk who I thought had really cared for me. I cried over the fact that I was wrong. He had never cared... he had never loved me. I should have seen it before.. and I beat myself up over the fact that I hadn't.

Tails' POV

I was laughing with Sonic and Amy about old times when I saw Mina get up and rush to the bathroom out of the corner of my eye. This worried me, so I told Sonic and Amy that I would be right back and headed there myself. With the way she was acting when I found her on the bench, there had to have been something going on...

When I reached the bathroom, the door was closed. I knocked softly. "Mina?" I said. "Are you okay?" I heard footsteps, and she pulled open the door. Her eyes were bloodshot, and she had tears streaming down her face. "Mina, what is going on?!" I exclaimed, my eyes widening at the sight of her. "Are you okay?

" She looked down, not answering my question. I wanted to get the answer out of her, so I asked "May I come in and talk to you?" She stepped aside, letting me through. As I closed the door and turned back to her, she was sitting on the toilet seat. "Mina," I started, walking toward her and kneeling in front of her. "Please tell me what happened." She sniffed and looked into my eyes. "Tails... I... I'm sorry.." she gripped her knees. "I'm sorry for all of this, I didn't want to do this, I-" I put my hand on her's. "Don't say sorry," I told her, squeezing her hand. "I am worried about you, I just want to know what happened, if you can talk about it. It is okay to cry."

She took a deep breath. "After the concert.. I went to my dressing room. When I opened the door... I saw Ash. He was..." she stopped for a moment, swallowing. "He was kissing another mongoose." Everything around me went silent. I felt my hands curl into fists at her words, and I felt like I was going to explode in rage. Ash had been cheating on Mina. That is all there was to it, a perfect and sweet girl who never harmed anyone being destroyed by an evil jackass who pretended to love her, when really he was brave enough to go behind her back and see another girl. I stood up and gritted my teeth, trying to hold in my anger. "Mina.. I- I am so-" She jumped into my arms, sobbing into my chest. I was surprised, my rage quickly resigning to the back of my mind. I wrapped my arms around her and rocked her back and forth as she cried. "Shh.." I whispered, running my hand through her hair to calm her. "It is okay, Mina. I am so sorry Mina.. he didn't deserve you. He never did. I am sorry he hurt you..."

After a few minutes of silently rocking her, she finally calmed down. We stayed in the hug for a bit, until she finally pulled back to look at me. "I'm sorry, Tails..." I shook my head. "Don't you dare apologize," I said , giving her a smile. "I am glad you told me.. glad you trusted me enough. I will always be here for you, Mina." She smiled at me, too. "Thank you.. thank you so much." She squeezed me into another hug. "I could have never gotten through this without you." I hugged her until she let go.

She cleaned herself up before we both went out of the bathroom and joined our friends. Mina and I had talked it out- she would break up with Ash and forget about him. I knew it would be hard for her.. but she was good enough to not want revenge. Me on the other hand? I couldn't help but want revenge. That idiot deserved to get his, after what he did to Mina. But I had to keep myself under control- For Mina's sake. No matter how much hate I had for Ash Mongoose, I could not let myself go. I knew that if I did, I could kill him. And it would be better for everyone if I just let it go.

Woo! Chapter 9. That was... really something. Tails knows what happened, and wants revenge. He will have to keep his rage under control, however, for Mina's sake. Mina, on the other hand? She is broken. It destroyed her, but luckily she had someone there for her. She will try to forget about Ash and maybe focus on something hidden right in front of her? Perhaps we will see...

Want to know what happens with Tails and his secret? How about a now-healing Mina? And A**- I mean Ash? Check out the next chapter soon!

Any questions/comments/concerns/feedback for me? Comment about it! Or message me!

Hope you enjoyed!

~Fangirling~


	10. I Thought I Knew You

Chapter 10- I Thought I Knew You

Mina's POV

After almost everyone had left, I decided to head out myself. I was tired, and I just wanted to sleep the day off. After saying goodbye to Amy and Tails (who had stayed late to help Amy clean up), I walked out and closed the door behind me. As I walked down the pathway and made my way through the back alley, I heard Amy's front door open and close again. I turned around to see Tails heading toward me. "Hey, I wanted to make sure you didn't want a walk home.." I gave him a smile. It was a nice offer, but I wanted some alone time to think. "Thank you, but I think I'll just walk alone for awhile, think things over if that's okay." He stood for a moment as if he was unsure, but then he returned my smile. "Okay," he answered, heading back for Amy's house. "Be careful out there. I hope you feel better, get some rest." As he opened Amy's door, I yelled to him "I will be careful, thank you!" and started again on my way.

It was very dark, especially on the back alleys I was taking. There was no noise but the chirping of the crickets, and it allowed me to think peacefully. Ash had really gone and cheated on me with another Mongoose girl. I knew he was a jerk sometimes, but I never expected him to do this. It broke me.. to know that I had put my trust and love into this relationship for nothing. It filled me with rage to see how easily he could go behind my back like that with someone else. I knew that it was over between us. He was no longer my boyfriend... and he was no longer my manager, either.

I was walking through a street in Metropolis when I started to get a creepy feeling. I felt like someone was following me. When I turned around, however, there was no one there. _Just keep on walking, Mina_ , I told myself, and I did. The longer I walked, the more I felt like someone was following me. It was when I started hearing footsteps that I really started to freak out. They were sounding closer and closer by the second. Feeling threatened, I started to sprint down the alleyway. Whatever was following me started running faster, and my heart was beating out of my chest as the thumping of the footsteps got louder. _Thump, Thump._ I started gasping as I was running. _Thump, Thump Thump._ I looked back, only to see a flash of black as the creature sprang on me, knocking me down to the ground. I wriggled and gasped, trying to get away, but it was strangling me. Everything was starting to go darker and darker...

Suddenly, I heard a voice. _"Mina?"_ This must have scared it off, as I regained my vision and could actually move. It felt as if nothing was there. I hurried to my feet, staring at the form of the one who had spoken. He was covered by darkness, but I knew that voice anywhere.

"Ash," I said, glaring. "If I isn't the two-timing jerkface who cheated on me."

Tails' POV

As I helped Amy with the last of the mess, she thanked me and I was on my way home. It was a dark night tonight.. no stars, and the moon was only a cresent. It was cool and had a nice breeze, so it made for a nice walk home. All I could think about was Mina, and how much her joke of a boyfriend had hurt her. I had never seen her cry like that.. and it broke my heart. I hoped that she was okay... she wasn't the kind to give up on everything and everyone because of one bump in the road. No matter how much this broke her, I knew she would pull herself back up.. that was Mina. And that was something I loved about her.

I hadn't been affected by the thing inside of me all night. That was a good thing, who knew what could've happened if I had lost control of it.. I decided not to think about that. Instead, I would think about how I was going to get it out of me. I couldn't stay like this forever, soon it would start to affect me in ways I didn't want to be affected. I knew that it wouldn't be easy to get rid of, especially since no machines were able to detect it yet. But I had some ideas on what to do about it, and I would not give up on finding the answer.

Mina's POV

"Hah, look at you. Snooping around, spying on me are you?" He seemed amused by all of this, standing there with his hands in his pockets and smirking. I crossed my arms and continued my glare. "Well, you just happened to be making out in _my_ dressing room during _my_ concert, so yeah, sure. I was "spying" Ash." He shook his head at me. "Ah, Mina. So naive. Did you really think I wouldn't go for a hotter girl when I had the chance?" He slowly walked toward me, adding more bitterness to every word that came out of his mouth. "Did you, Mina, really think that you were good enough for _me?_ I am Ash Mongoose, for God's sake. Just _look_ at me." He stopped in front of me, taking my face in his hand and pulling it up to look him in the eyes. "Did you really think that I could _ever_ love you?"

This hit me where it hurt. After everything I had given for this... he never really loved me. I was just another toy for him. I was never anything. For him to stand here and tell me that, hurt me. And looking into his eyes now, I could see the coldness. The coldness toward me through all of the years we were together, the coldness as he cheated without a care in the word, the coldness as he said each word now. It sent shivers down my back. The coldness quickly turned to amusement as he saw the pain in my eyes. "Look at you," he said, his voice teasing. "Little Mina, weak as always. Did I hurt your _feelings?_ Do you not like the real me? Well..." He suddenly shoved me with so much force that I fell to the ground. "Get used to it!" He screamed in my face, and I knew that he had lost it.

He kicked me in the side, so hard that I gasped for breath. "N-no," I coughed out, putting up my hands to defend my face. "P-please Ash, don't do thi-" He pulled me up by my arm and threw me back to the ground. "Shut up," he said, walking toward me again. I pulled my face up from off of the ground, and it hurt. I knew that I had some damage. I rolled over to see his fist coming for me, but luckily I dodged it just in time. "You are getting smart now, huh?" He started to laugh, laugh like a maniac. _He is a maniac_ , I thought to myself, and tears started running down my face. My boyfriend for so many years, who I had loved and trusted, was now hurting me. Mentally and Physically hurting me. This was low, even for Ash.

Ash was laughing even louder now, kicking broken rocks out of his way. "Oh, Mina," He started, leaning over me and staring again into my eyes. "You... were a fool." He pulled back his fist, preparing for another punch. "To ever," He moved forward. "Think you were ANYTHING!" I closed my eyes as his fist came toward me. Instead of being hit again, however, I heard a familiar yell as someone landed on top of Ash and tackled him to the ground. I heard many punches, and Ash was struggling and cussing under his breath. I could feel myself going unconcious. Suddenly, a determined voice woke me back up. "Mina, are you okay?" I opened my eyes to see that Ash was being held to the ground in an arm bar with a very angry looking Tails on top of him. "Y-yeah," I told him, stretching out my limbs. Everything. Hurt. He had damaged my body pretty badly, but I knew I wouldn't be able to lie here for long.

Calling Tails angry would be a major understatement. I had never seen him like this before. His was enraged. And honestly, it was kind of scary. I knew Tails had a clear win in this fight. Before he could finish the fight, however, Ash suddenly gained control. He threw Tails off of him and jumped up from the ground. He picked Tails up and slammed him up against the wall by his neck, strangling him. I screamed as he started turning a light shade of blue. With all of my might, I pulled myself off of the ground. I couldn't walk very well but I managed to stumble toward Ash. I picked up a brick from the ground and threw it with all of my power at Ash's head. It hit him, making him let go of Tails and fall to his knees. He quickly got back up though, and he turned back on me. He shoved me against the wall as hard as he could, and I slid down the wall and down to the ground. It was over... Ash would win.

Tails' POV

I had never felt like this before. I heard screams and insane laughing, and it had led me here. When I saw Ash hurting Mina... something inside me snapped. All I wanted was to kill him. I ran toward him and tackled him to he ground, fighting him and holding him down with all of my might. When he gained control and slammed me into a wall, he had started squeezing my throat as hard as he could. I couldn't breathe, and I was starting to fall under when Mina hit him clean in the head with a brick. He let go of me and I fell to my knees, gasping for air. Before I could move, he had shoved Mina into the wall. That was the final straw. I felt myself shaking.. I was starting to see red. I screamed as it took over me, the thing inside of me took over and transformed me. I stood up, walking toward Ash. This... would end.. now.

Mina's POV

I watched as Tails shook uncontrollably on the ground as he was engulfed in what looked like black flames. I was in shock.. he had dissapeared. Suddenly, Ash was hit with a blast of dark fire and thrown into a wall. A dark blur zoomed past me, taking Ash and trapping him against the wall. My eyes finally focused, and what I saw made my jaw drop. It was Tails.. but he was... different. He was surrounded by a dark aura, his eyes completely white. And he looked like he was ready to kill Ash on the spot. He spoke in a voice that was not his. "I... Will... Kill... You.."

Tails' POV

It was taking control of me. I couldn't kill Ash.. even after everything he did. It would make me just as evil as him, and I couldn't have that. I tried to stop myself, but I had no control of my hands as I took Ash by the collar and slammed him against the concrete. The voice of the thing inside of me laughed an evil laugh, it was taking pleasure out of this. It took Ash again and threw him against the wall, then It threw a punch at his stomach. _Yes.._ _Yes you fool... KILL HIM! It_ punched Ash repeatedly, laughing nonstop. I could barely think any other thought... all I could think was _Kill._

Suddenly, a scream caught me off guard. "Tails!" I felt my mind gain control again as I forced myself to turn toward the scream. Mina was standing, breathing heavily. She was looking at me with fear in her eyes. She spoke again. "I know this isn't you, Tails." This gave me more awareness as I felt myself gain control of my arms. "I know you are in there.. you need to regain control."

That was it. I fought against the spirit inside of me to regain control of myself, becoming more and more concious as the soul burrowed deeper and deeper. Finally, I could think for myself again. I turned to Ash, who was mangled enough for my liking. My hand pulled itself up and sent something flying toward him. After a birght flash of light, he was gone. _Hahaha..._ The voice in my head spoke up. _He is where he deserves to be now.. he will never bother you again._ At the moment, I didn't care where Ash was. I wanted him gone so I couldn't kill him. After what he did to Mina... _Mina._ She was the reason I gained control. She was the reason I kept fighting. With this thought, I fell to my knees, my sight returning to normal and my rage leaving me.

I slowly stood up, turning around to face Mina. She just stared at me for a moment, and I stared back. Suddenly, she smiled. I walked toward her and met her in the middle as she fell into my arms and hugged me. We stood there, our arms around each other tightly as if we would never let go again. Both of us said nothing. After a few minutes of hugging, I pulled away and looked into her eyes. "Mina.."

She just smiled at me. She shook her head. "Tails... I don't even know where to-" Suddenly, she stopped. Her eyes went blank, and I quickly caught her again as she fell back into my arms.

Unconcious.

First Thing's first- I'm sorry.

I know how much you probably hate me for that cliffhanger, and I'm sorry. But what is a story without a cliffhanger, right?

Ahg, this chapter took so much thinking. And I was exhausted, so I wasn't very good at that. Hopefully it is still good, and not too boring or lacking details!

What about Ash? Well, we are rid of him. (At least for now :))

Mina is broken, mentally and physically. She also just experienced Tails' dark side.

Tails is starting to have trouble controlling himself. Seeing Mina being hurt was what unlocked his secret? Hmm...

Any questions/Comments/Feedback? Comment!

I hope you all enjoyed! Stay tuned for Chapter 11!

~Fangirling~


	11. By Your Side

Chapter 11- By Your Side

…

I couldn't believe it. The chaos inside of my host was making it harder for me to take full control of him. I even turned his own hatred and hate against him, and tried to rid of his worst enemy.. but he still found a way to take control and stop me. Why? Why did he not want the fool dead? The people of this world were confusing.. if someone angers you, why not just kill them?

I _would_ havecontrol. I would find a way to use the chaos to my advantage and have total control. After this, I could take in more lifepower while turning the fox against everything he worked for, not to mention using him against everyone that trusted him so I could best them. Honestly, the kid was making it easier and easier on me... soon I would have what I wanted. And no one would be able to stop me. All I would have to do now is find a way to catch my host off guard so I could cause him to do something he regretted.. and lose the trust of the one closest to him.

Tails' POV

"After a bit of rest and warm care, she will be back to normal in no time," Doctor Sol told me. I had carried Mina to my house, layed her down on the couch, and called the doctor I trusted most in Mobius to come and check up on Mina. He had been weary of her injuries, and I explained what had happened. As a long time friend of the freedom-fighters, this didn't surprise him. I had asked him about why she had passed out, he told me he truly wasn't sure, and that it could have been exhaustion and pain that caused her systems to shut down. He didn't seem too concerned about her condition, though, and after giving me medicine for her he left my home. I, for one, was very concerned about her, staying by her side at all times.

After the doctor had left, I covered Mina up with a blanket and pulled up a chair to sit beside her. She looked peaceful... she had her mind off of things for awhile. I wondered to myself why I decided not to kill Ash... I wanted to, but after looking into Mina's eyes I changed my mind. I knew she didn't want him dead, even after everything he had done to her. That evil A** didn't deserve her... he never did. And I felt better now that she wasn't with him.

It took me awhile to realize what had happened while I was fighting Ash. Whatever was inside me had taken over... I could have killed Ash on the spot. Not only that, but now my secret was out. She watched me.. as my rage took over. She knew my dark secret. And I had no idea how she felt about me now that she knew I was hiding a rage-driven monster inside of me. With this thought, I looked back over at her. I remembered how she had stared at me after Ash dissapeared, the look of pain in her eyes. But then, she had jumped into my arms. She hugged me, not letting go. It felt warm, new... like, for the first time, we were really connecting. Even before that, we shared a look that felt like never before...

I felt my eyes getting heavy, I was exhausted after today. Mina was beside me, safe and sound. As my eyes closed, I thought once more about Ash. I had no control over what had happened, he was sent somewhere... at this point, I didn't care. As long as he never went anywhere near Mina, as long as he never hurt her again.. next time, I would kill him. And that was something my rage wouldn't decide.

Mina's POV

Pain. That is all I felt as I lied there, my eyes closed. I was scared to open them, God knows where I was. I could still be on the ground, being pushed around by my ex boyfriend for all I knew. Heck, I could still be up against a wall, being rescued by a scary-looking Tails... oh my god. Tails. He had turned into a dark and scary version of himself and almost murdered Ash right in the alley way. He stopped though... after we locked eyes. It was like I spoke to him through my mind... did I?

I decided to open my eyes, and I did it quickly. I wasn't dying, so that was a good start. I looked around, letting my eyes focus. I was in Tails' house. He must have carried me here... but what happened?

I looked over to the right, and smiled. Tails was sitting in a chair beside me, snoring peacefully. It looked as if he had never left my side... this thought made me feel warm. Tails seemed to care more for me than... Ug. I didn't even want to think of his name.

Tails opened his eyes, immediately looking at me. When he saw me awake, he jumped up. "You're awake!" he exclaimed, smiling. "Thank God, I was so worried!" He sounded so happy. "Yep," I said, forcing myself to sit up. "I sure am, awake and alive. Thanks to you of course!" He came over and helped pull me up. "Hehe, thank your strength. You could survive anything." After we shared a laugh and I was situated, I thanked him and decided to get some info.

"So, what exactly happened?" Tails sat back down and looked at me firmly. "Well," he started, rubbing his eyes. "After Ash dissapeared, which you do remember, right?" I nodded, and he continued. "Okay, so, after Ash dissapeared you stood up and just stared at me for a moment. Finally, you rushed toward me and jumped into my arms. We hugged for quite awhile. After I had pulled away, you tried to tell me something, but then you just collapsed into my arms. I rushed you here and called Doc Sol, who had come and checked up on you. He told me not to worry... but I couldn't stop worrying. For awhile there, I thought that you might have not made it out of this okay."

After Tails was done explaining everything, I just sat there, thinking. I could have died... Ash had beaten me pretty hard. He was aiming for killing me, that is how crazy he was. If Tails hadn't intervened... I didn't even want to think about how that would've ended. He had risked his life to save me from my abusive and insane boyfriend..

Wow. Tails truly was amazing.

"Thank you," I finally said. "Thank you... for everything." He looked over at me. "What do you mean?" He said, and I sighed. "Well," I began, "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. That maniac would have killed me.. you risked your life to save me, Tails. Thank you... and... I'm so sorry-"

He stood up and walked toward me quickly. When he reached me, he got down on his knee and lifted my chin up with his finger. "Hey," he said, looking into my eyes. "Don't apologize. Please. It isn't and will never be your fault. I had to rescue you, I couldn't stand to see you being hurt by him. I am just glad I got there in time.. I don't want to think about ever losing you." After this, he pulled me into a hug. I could feel myself blushing at his words. He really did care about me a lot. He was willing to risk his life for my safety.. that was something Ash would have never done.

Tails' POV

After I let go of her, I stood up and went to the kitchen. I grabbed a grape soda from the fridge and returned to Mina. I opened the can and handed it to her. "Please, drink, you need fluids." She thanked me as she took a sip of the pop and set the can down beside her. After a moment, she said "Hey, Tails? Can I ask you about something?" There it was. I knew it was coming. As much as I didn't want her to know about this, I had to answer her questions. So, with that in mind, I replied "Of course." She gave me a reassuring smile. "Thank you," she began, and she took another drink before asking: "Why did you turn all dark and scary back there?"

I swallowed back my nerves and stood up. "Well, Mina," I started, before taking a deep breath. "Let me start at the beginning." And I told her the whole story. I told her about how I had been attacked after the party, how I had been possessed in an alley, and how I had lost control of my rage and lashed out on Ash. After I had finished, I could tell she was in shock. "Tails," she finally said, her voice sounding nervous. "Your symptoms that you described... feeling a loss of energy, losing control of your mind and body... it sounds like..." I nodded. "You are right," I told her, feeling nervous myself. "They are the symptoms of the people being hospitalized. The thing inside of me has been jumping bodies."

She looked at me, her eyes showing her fear. "This thing is taking the lifepower of everyone in the city.. and what about you, Tails? What will it do to you?" The truth was, I wasn't sure what it would do to me. It had been in my body for longer than it was in anyone else's body, and no one else was reported to have changed when angry. After I failed to answer her, she looked down. "So.. we don't know what it could do to you." Her voice was shaking. I started toward her, trying to comfort her. "Don't worry, I will be okay. I just want to get rid of it before it gets worse. We can't have it taking anyone else's life energy." I was truly worried about it getting to anyone else, but my biggest concern was keeping myself in check. If I lost control again.. who knew what could happen. No matter what, I could not let it take over again, or I could end up hurting something-or someone- that I cared deeply about.

And I could not live with myself if that happened.


	12. Turning Things Around

Chapter 12- Turning Things Around

Mina's POV

Silence. That is what surrounded me as I stood in an empty field. Looking down at my hands, I fell backwards in shock as I saw the black haze that surrounded me. It was just like what I saw around Tails when he turned dark. But... how was it possible? Nothing happened to me that would have caused _me_ to experience this..

"Mina, please." I looked up at the sound of his voice. Tails was standing in front of me, looking at me with pleading eyes. "Please, come back to me." I stared at him, confused. "Uhhh.." I started to quietly freak out, something obviously wasn't right. "What are you talking about, Tails? I am right here." He shook his head, and started toward me. "No, you aren't," he said, stopping in front of me and taking my hand. "You are letting it take control of you, please Mina, come back. I don't want to lose you to-"

Suddenly, Tails fell backwards onto the ground. He pulled himself up on one knee but could not stand before something started to tear its way through his body. He started to scream in pain as a dark spirit escaped through his body and made its way behind him. After this, Tails' body fell to the ground, not moving. I started to scream, running towards him. But something stopped me, I couldn't move. No matter how hard I tried, I was stuck in place. Suddenly, I could hear an evil laugh coming from inside of my head. Taunting me. Angering me. I watched Tails struggle on the ground in pain, and it hurt me. I could feel tears in my eyes, all I wanted was to save him... help him.. and I couldn't. I could hear a distant voice, and it sounded like Tails. It got closer and closer, whispering my name...

I opened my eyes. I was still on Tails' couch, wrapped up in a blanket. He was leaning over me, his hand on my shoulder. "Tails!" I exclaimed, sitting up abruptly. "Good morning sleepy head," he said, smiling. "It took forever to wake you up.. I was starting to worry again." This made me feel bad. Making him worry, for nothing-

"I'm sorry," I said, rubbing my arm and looking down. "I was sleeping so deep, I guess I didn't hear you." He shook his head. "No, it is okay," he said. "You needed extra sleep. Would you like some breakfast now? I made eggs and bacon!" He knew me so well, eggs and bacon had always been one of my favorite breakfasts. "Yes, please," I said, and he headed into the kitchen. It was so sweet of him, to take care of me, watch over me.. I wanted to repay him- but how? I wondered this to myself as I pulled myself up from the couch and slowly walked to the kitchen.

When I met him in the kitchen, Tails handed me a plate of eggs and bacon. He arranged the food in the shape of a smiley face, which made me smile. Tails saw my reaction and smiled himself. "I hope it tastes good, I may be a good mechanic but that surprisingly does not go hand in hand with cooking." As he said this, I had already shoved half of the food into my mouth. "Thish ish honestly. The besth food I have ever thasted," I said elegantly with a mouth full of food. This made him laugh, and I joined in after I had swallowed. I watched him, and my heart felt warm seeing him so happy. I had never noticed before, but... I shook my thoughts from my head as I shoved the rest of the food in my mouth and gulped down the orange juice. "Thank you so much Tails," I said after I had finished. That was delicious." He took my empty plate and glass and set them in the sink. "It has been my pleasure, Mina," he said. "I am glad I could take care of you." The truth was, so was I. I probably wouldn't have been able to make it without him..

"Hey, I need to go out and get some supplies for my plane, you want to join me?" This caught me off guard, I looked up at him. "Did you just invite me to join you on a shopping spree?" I asked, and he grinned. "Yeah, sure. If that's what you wanna call it." I grinned back. This actually sounded like fun, and I wouldn't hesitate any longer to say yes. "That sounds like a great idea. Allow me to clean up a bit and then we can get going!" He nodded and directed me to the upstairs of his house. "Bathroom is up there, help yourself." I thanked him and headed up the steps. I had a feeling that today was going to be a good day. And I really wanted a good day right now.

Tails' POV

As I waited for Mina, I thought about the last few days. Everything with Ash, everything going on with Mina... I felt good to know that I could help her and take care of her. I could tell she was feeling better today, and she seemed happier. I was hoping that some fun in town would make her feel even better. She deserved fun- she deserved to smile.

I heard Mina's footsteps as she came downstairs, and I walked over to her and met her at the bottom of the stairs. "Are you ready?" I asked, and she nodded. She followed me out the door, and after I locked it we hit the road.

As we walked to town, we talked about random things. I told her about my favorite flavors of coffee, she described to me the "little tingly feeling" she got in the pit of her stomach when she sang for people. I enjoyed talking with her- it felt so right. I was learning more about her... I always wanted that.

When we reached Mobius Hardware, Mina trailed along behind me as I picked out my plane parts. She waited patiently as I bought some bolts, wiring and other random pieces that she had me explain to her. After I had the parts I needed, we checked out and left the store.

When we were outside, Mina asked "So, what next?" I thought for a moment. I was starting to get a bit of a craving for something sweet, and then it hit me. "Let's go and get some ice cream!" Mina lit up. "Okay!" She exclaimed, and we headed for the ice cream stand.

When we got there, I ordered a Mint Chocolate Chip for myself, and Mina ordered a Strawberry. After I had payed and we got our cones, we found a bench and sat down. _This ice cream is so good,_ I thought to myself as I basically shoved the whole thing down my throat. I glanced over at Mina, who was eating hers in silence. "Hey, are you doing okay?" I asked, and she looked up at me. Suddenly, she smiled. "Yeah, actually, I am doing great. I think I am over the whole Ash thing." This made me smile. She was better off without him, and knowing that she was over the situation made me feel happy. I wasn't sure if this meant she was over him as a whole, but I decided not to ask. "That is great," I answered. "Good to know you are feeling better." And it really was. I was worried about her before.. watching her cry like that. That dirty cheater really broke her.. I always knew he was bad news.

After we both had finished our ice cream, we started heading for my house. As we walked, Mina hummed one of her songs, and I closed my eyes and listened. The sound of her voice made me smile, like always.

Mina's POV

I was humming some of _All I Know_ when I suddenly heard a small voice say "'scuse me?" I turned to see a little kid running toward us. He stopped in front of us, trying to catch his breath. Tails smiled and kneeled in front of him. "Can we help you?" he asked warmly, and the kid's eyes widened. "Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, it is really you! You are Tails! From the freedom fighters!" Tails nodded. "I sure am, buddy! Nice to meet you!"

The kid looked like he was going to explode in excitement. "My name is Jimmy, and I am.. your.. biggest.. fan!" Tails laughed and put his hand on Jimmy's shoulder. "I am glad to finally meet my biggest fan." He grinned at Tails and took off his baseball cap. "Can you please sign this for me, mister Tails?" Tails took a pen from his belt. "Of course I can," he answered, signing his name onto the hat and placing it back on Jimmy's head. "Wow, thank you, thank you!" Jimmy jumped around in excitement. He was an adorable little fox who had kind eyes and wore an aviator's jacket. He reminded me of Tails so much.

As I pondered this, I heard Jimmy gasp in excitement as he ran over to me. "Are you Mina Mongoose?" I looked down at him. "Yes, I am!" I said, and he starting squealing. "MY TWO BIGGEST HEROES IN ONE DAY!" I looked over at Tails, who was grinning at me. Wow. My own biggest fan. He handed me his cap. "Can you sign my cap, too?" I smiled. "Of course, Jimmy." Tails handed me a pen, and I signed the hat. As I handed it back to him, he took out his phone. "Would it be okay if we took a selfie? I want to remember this moment forever!" Tails and I both joined in as he lifted his phone. "Say cheese!" he exclaimed, and we followed suit as he snapped the photo.

After we had posed for a few selfies, a young woman who looked like his mother came over. "Jimmy, is that Tails the Fox and Mina Mongoose?" Her jaw dropped. Jimmy ran over to her. "It is mom! It is them! My two biggest heroes in one day! Can you believe it?" She replied "no, I can't" in amazement. I waved, and Tails said "Hello, nice to meet you." She told us the same. She explained to us that Jimmy never stopped talking about either one of us, always telling tales of our adventures and Mina's concerts. He had always wanted to meet us, and this had to have been the biggest moment of his life. This made us both smile. It was good to know that kids out there believed in us.

"Jimmy, we need to be going now sweetie." Jimmy's mom motioned Jimmy to follow. He tugged on her skirt, and she leaned down. After he whispered something in her ear, she nodded and he ran back over to us. He hugged us both tightly. "Thank you Tails and Mina. You guys are the best!" He ran back over to his mom, who thanked us both. We waved as they started to walk away from us. I heard Jimmy yell "BEST DAY EVER!" and smiled at Tails. I saw him looking at Jimmy with a big smile on his face. I saw something else there..but I couldn't quite place it. He suddenly broke the silence. "It feels good to meet a big fan." I nodded in agreement. "It sure does," I said. "He was adorable, too. I think we may have made his day." Tails shook his head. "Nahhh, it seems more like we made his week, or month. Maybe year?" We both laughed. Being a hero was worth it when you saw how kids like Jimmy looked at you, and I knew Tails agreed.

When we got to Tails' house, I told Tails I was going to go home for a bit. I hadn't been there in days, and I had some things I wanted to take care of. He looked at me, worried. "That is fine, but.. should I walk you home?" I knew he was worried about me being alone, but.. Ash was gone at the moment.. and he was the only one I would be worried about. "No thank you, Tails. You have done plenty for me, and.. I think I will be fine." He was quiet for a moment, until he finally replied "okay, if you are sure. Call me if you need me." I nodded and started to head out, when I suddenly remembered something. "Thank you for today, Tails. It was fun... and I really needed it." He smiled at me. "Of course, and thank you for hanging out with me. You deserved some fun." I smiled back, and headed out. I really did need it...Tails was helping me so much. He took my mind off of Ash, which was something I definitely needed. If it weren't for him..I would still be crying about him.

Tails' POV

After Mina had left, I started to work on my plane. I went back to listening to the CD I was listening to before. It brought back memories of that night, as I watched her lay helplessly on the ground as Ash kicked her and beat her like she was nothing.. My fist tightened around my wrench at this thought. _Forget it, Tails,_ I told myself. It was true- I needed to forget. If I didn't, then I would just let it win again. The thing inside me would take over.. I couldn't do that again. Instead, I thought about the good parts of that night. The parts where she sang her heart out. The parts where she smiled at me from center stage. Like she was speaking to me through her eyes, I always knew what she was thinking. I always felt connected to her.. and I always wondered if she felt the same way.

Who knew.

Heya everybody! I am not going to lie, I got a bit of writer's block on this chapter. This chapter was a pain in the butt for some reason, but I am finally done with it. Don't worry! I have plans for the next chapter, so it will be better, and not so spur of the moment like this one. The name is kind of.. not very original, I couldn't think of that, either. Anyway, even though this isn't my greatest work, it had some important things in it that will come into play later in the story! That is about all I can say. I am exhausted.

I hope you enjoyed, and like always, love comments!

See you next chapter

~Fangirling~


	13. Something There

Chapter 13- Something There

Mina's POV

I was already bored. Being home wasn't the same after spending so much time at Tails' house. I felt like I had nothing to do... so it looked as if the only answer was going back to his place. Hopefully he wouldn't mind me hanging out some more, we could watch a movie or something.

I texted to see if it would be okay if I came over, and while I waited for a reply I scribbled down a rough draft for a new song. I had no idea what to write about next.. I needed a song that really _meant_ something. A song that really spoke out my feelings to the world. Something... big.

I waited for awhile, and Tails still hadn't texted back. I decided to head over, I wanted to check on him anyway. I popped in some earbuds, turned on my jams, and headed for the workshop once again.

When I reached Tails' doorstep, I knocked on the door. When Tails didn't answer, I checked the knob. It was unlocked. I let myself in, calling his name as I walked through his house. He wasn't in the living room or the kitchen, so I peeked into the workshop. Sure enough, Tails was snoring softly, his head on the workbench and a wrench in his grasp. He must have worked himself to sleep...

The sight made me smile. He looked peaceful, and I didn't want to wake him. I tiptoed over, carefully taking the wrench out of his hand and placing it on the bench. I went into the living room and grabbed a pillow and came back to place it under his head. I stepped back and watched him sleep for a few moments. I had never noticed it before, but... he was actually really cute. I found myself blushing a little at this. He was my best friend. I wasn't aloud to think he was cute when he was sleeping... right? It was just because he was sleeping... right?

I decided to walk away and leave him to sleep. I went to the kitchen, suddenly hungry. I didn't think Tails would mind if I made us a little dinner. I looked through the cupboards and the refrigerator, collecting everything I could find that went together. After looking at the things I scrounged up, I decided on spaghetti. It was something that even I couldn't mess up.

Tails' POV

The smell of food awakened me. I lifted my head up and looked around, startled. _I never cooked anything today, did I? …_ I sniffed a few times.. it smelled like... tomato sauce. Who in the hell broke into my house to cook dinner?

I jumped up and grabbed my wrench off of the workbench. Slowly and quietly, I sneaked toward the kitchen. I could hear the clang of pots and pans and water running. Whoever was in my house was not trying to be sneaky at all. That made me rethink my thoughts of it being some super evil thief, but I could never be too careful. As I progressed into the room, I looked around. There was no one in sight, but a pot of boiling spaghetti was on the stove. Suddenly, a voice came from behind me. "Hey Tails!" I jumped about 2 feet across the room, wheeled around and held up my wrench, ready to attack.

Mina's POV 

I threw my hands up into the air, surrendering. "Woah, there! Please don't hurt me! I'm unarmed!" I suddenly remembered the spoon in my hand and hid it behind my back, laughing nervously. Tails stared at me for a moment with a confused look on my face. "Mina?" He finally said, lowering his wrench. "What.. are you doing here?" I put my other arm down, feeling safe. "Sorry, Tails. I texted to see if I could come over, and you didn't answer, so I let myself in to check on you. You looked so peaceful in there sleeping, so I didn't want to wake you. I decided to make you some dinner to make up for all the time you spent on taking care of me. Hope spaghetti is okay!"

Tails smiled as he listened to me ramble on. "Yeah, that is fine. Sorry, I must have just crashed. Thank you for this, Mina. It smells amazing." I smirked at him. "Next time, please don't threaten me with a wrench. I was only trying to help!" He shook his head at me. "I could've clobbered you with my wrench. Next time, show yourself, Jeesh." We both laughed.

I served Tails a bowl, and then I got myself one. I watched as Tails took a bite, his face lighting up instantly. "This is the best spaghetti I have ever tasted!" he exclaimed. I took a bite for myself, and it wasn't too shabby. At least that was something I could cook well.

As I was eating my spaghetti, Tails asked me why I didn't want to be in my house. "Well, I thought I did, but I got so bored very quickly." I shoveled in food as I explained to him my weird antics. "I guess I just had so much fun with you that I didn't want it to end!" I saw him grin at this. I also thought I saw his face turn a little red.. but he quickly shook it off. "Aww, well I can live with that." He finished his pasta and washed his dish in the sink. "You know, I have had a lot of fun with you, too." His back was turned, so I let myself blush on this one. Why? I had no idea. But something about that made my face decide to turn red.

Tails POV

I turned back to Mina with an idea in my head. "Well, Mina, who ever said the fun had to end?" she looked at me. "What do you mean?" she asked, and I replied. "We could do something together tonight.. any suggestions?" She gasped. "Actually, yes! I wanted to see if you wanted to watch a movie. I could make some popcorn and we could pick a comedy!" I did love comedies, and even more I loved being with Mina. "That sounds great, pick out a movie and I'll pop it in." I could tell she was excited as she rushed over to my shelf of dvds. She browsed through the movies, finally pulling one out. "How about _Deadpool?"_ I nodded, as Deadpool had always been one of my favorites. "Alrighty, love that one." I took the disc from her as she went into the kitchen. She came back only moments later, with a big bowl. "Popcorn?" She asked, joining me on the couch.

Mina's POV 

As we laughed our heads off at the artist that is Ryan Reynolds, I felt something.. different. There was suddenly this new feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I looked at Tails, or even when our hands lightly brushed up against each other when we both reached for popcorn at the same time. It was a good feeling. I liked it. Being alone with him, laughing and having a good time.. it was the best feeling I had had since I first started dating Ash.

Tails' POV

As the movie came close to ending, Mina started to move closer to me. I blushed as she snuggled even closer to me. She acted like she was... comfortable. And strangely, besides the fact that my heart was pounding, I felt comfortable, too. It felt right to be cuddled together like this, watching a movie. Like we should have been doing it all the time.

When the movie ended, we stayed how we were for a few minutes, silent. She lay there, listening to my heart beat. She spoke up "Are you okay, Tails? It sounds like your heart is going crazy." My face went more red as I mumbled "Y-yeah, I am fine, it's fine." She sat up and giggled at me. "Okay, whatever you say," she said, standing up and heading to the kitchen to grab a soda. I sat there for a moment, staring off into space. Was it a dream? I pinched myself to make sure, and then I stood up. I started to feel strange.. a little dizzy. Maybe I had gotten up to fast? I slowly started for the kitchen, and stopped. My head suddenly felt as if it was going to explode. It pounded loudly, as did my heart. I started to feel it again... rage. A bubbling, burning rage that made its way through my veins. It was taking over again.. this time, when I wasn't even angry.

Mina's POV

When I returned to the living room with my cold soda, I was smiling. Tonight had been amazing.. and cuddling with Tails made me realize something. It felt so right. I had never felt anything that right with Ash.. but what did it mean?

I stopped. My soda fell out of my hand and onto the floor, and all thoughts escaped through my mind. I watched Tails fall to the ground, holding his chest and growling. His fingers scraped the floor as he screamed in pain. A dark haze formed around him, and suddenly he wasn't Tails anymore. No, it was the thing again.

It was back.

And, before I could say anything, he lunged toward me.

And everything went black.

HELLO THERE! Finally, a good chapter. With a cliffy! ;)

Sorry, I had to. This is just how you make a story good. Intense with a good ending that leaves you hanging. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and I hope that you all have fun reading it!

I can not say much more about this chapter. What happened with Tails and with Mina, only you can decide for yourself what all of that meant. And Deadpool? One of my favorite movies :)

Please, tell me what you think.

Until next chapter, Goodnight!

~Fangirling


	14. I Need You

Chapter 14- I Need You

(Sorry, it's kind of short)

Mina's POV

As I opened my eyes, I gasped when I saw that Tails had a hold of me. He was growling in my face, and it sounded like an angry and murderous beast. But this wasn't some beast.. this was Tails. And I knew he had no control of his actions.. it was that thing inside of him that was causing him to do this.

As I tried to pull out from his grip, Tails noticed and pushed me against the wall. He trapped my neck with his arm, and I couldn't move or breathe. I had to stop him... before.. before he killed me. And I knew that if he killed me then he would probably kill himself. That was Tails..

With the breath I had left, I spoke out to him. "T-Tails," I stuttered, and he tightened his hold on my throat. I gasped for air, trying to pull his arms away, but he was too strong. I had to try something else. I focused my gaze on his white eyes and looked into them. "I.. know... you are in there.. Tails.." I coughed as the space to breathe tightened with every word. "Please.. come.. back.." Tails' hand pulled back into a fist surrounded by black flame, charging up the energy. If I didn't wake him up soon, I would be dead.

I took one final breath before my next words. "Miles.. I need you." He suddenly stopped everything, frozen in place as he looked into my eyes. I gasped as his arm loosened. "I..n-need.. you.." I could see the evil leave him slowly as his put his arm down and lowered his fist. As the dark color dissapeared and his eyes regained their color, he stepped away from me slowly. He had a look of fear in his eyes. "O-oh my god.." he whispered, and I looked at him worriedly. "Tails?" I said, and he shook his head at me. "No.. no. How.. how could I... do this.." I started toward him slowly. He was freaking out. "I... I almost killed you.. I almost killed you with my own hands.. I.." I interrupted him. "No, Tails! It wasn't you.. it was that thing." He saw that I was coming close to him and he backed away more. "No, Mina.. you can't be with me anymore. I have to stay away from you.. I'm too dangerous." I couldn't believe it. Tails was trying to tell me that I could never see him again. And I wasn't okay with that.

I backed him into a wall, stopping in front of him. His breathing sped up as he looked into my eyes. "Mina..-" I motioned for silence. "Tails, I'm sorry. But.. I am not going to stay away from you just because of something you had no control of." His eyes filled with pain at my words. "Exactly.. something I had no control of." His voice sounded angry. "I lost control to that evil thing and almost killed you. Next time, it could be even worse. I could wake up to you dead on the floor, who knows." I shook my head at him, he could be so foolish sometimes.

"Tails," I started, taking his hands. "Even if you have some demon inside of you that you can't control sometimes, I will always be by your side. I knew that it wasn't you.. and I trusted you to not kill me." He started to say something, but I put up a finger. "Even if you are being controlled.. you are always still in there. You are good at regaining control, Tails. And.. even a dark soul couldn't stop your love and chaos from showing through. So please, stop blaming yourself. You are not dangerous." He breathed out, and I could feel him calm down only a little bit. "Mina.. I just.. couldn't live with myself if something happened to you." As he said this, I felt him grip my hands tighter. My heart felt warm..

"Nothing will happen to me, Tails." I smiled up at him, trying to show that I meant it. "And I trust that the thing inside of you won't be able to reach me." His eyes filled with tears as he asked "How do you know? How do you know that I won't just.. snap.. and.. hurt you?" I lifted my hand to the side of his face, resting it there. "Because, Tails," I started, and the look in his eyes changed at my touch. "I know that you would catch yourself. I know that you couldn't hurt an innocent soul. I know you, Miles Prower." And as I said this, I moved my face closer to his. I felt him do the same. I closed my eyes as our lips met. My heart raced and my face burned like crazy as we shared a long, warm kiss. It was everything I wanted.. every thought left my mind, everything was okay as our lips moved together. We were really connected.. we really spoke to each other. It was possibly the most amazing moment of my life. And I never wanted it to end.

Tails' POV

She was kissing me. Mina Mongoose was kissing me. And it was just as wonderful as I had imagined. It wasn't just some random, crappy kiss that you give your first high-school girlfriend. No, it was more than that. It was full of meaning, warmth.. love. And that was all I could ask for for a first kiss.

When we finally pulled apart, Mina smiled at me. I smiled back, truly at my happiest. "Well," she suddenly said, smirking. "That just happened. You aren't a bad kisser, Tails." I laughed, replying with "You aren't too bad yourself." We shared a laugh, and for the first time it felt real.

The next thing to do was obvious. The girl of my dreams had kissed me, it was now time to ask her to be mine. I took her hands in mine, and she looked up at me, surprised. "Mina Mongoose," I started, becoming nervous. "I.. had been wanting to ask this for a long time.. and now is the best moment. So.." I swallowed, readying myself for my next words. "Will you.. be my girlfriend?"

She looked at me for a moment, her eyes showing no answer. Then, she smiled. "Tails," she started, pulling her hands out from mine. "Of course, my answer is.. yes!" she jumped into my arms, hugging me tightly. I wrapped my arms around her, happy. She was mine, finally. And I was hers. And I still couldn't believe it was really true. It had been a dream for so long..

I couldn't lose control again, not now. I had someone to protect with my life. My only priority now was simple.

Protecting Mina at all costs.

There you go! The long awaited moment has finally arrived. As you may have guessed, I had been waiting to write this chapter since the beginning! I had to wait until the perfect moment, and.. I am pretty proud of my choice :)

Tails and Mina are now together! And Tails is going to protect her at all costs. What does that mean for the thing inside of him? Will he be able to control himself, or will it take over again and cause Tails to do something he regrets? Keep reading to find out :)

Mina was the one who initiated the kiss. How about that?

Please, tell me what you think of this chapter and this story so far in the comments!

You can always P.M. Me as well, for feedback, opinions, or if you just want to chat!

Thank you all for reading, and good night~

Fangirling


	15. Freedom-Fight

Chapter 15- Freedom-Fight

Mina's POV

"You guys are WHAT?!" Amy's jaw dropped as she heard the news. I blushed a little and quickly replied "Yep, me and Tails are dating now." She was super excited as she ran over to me and almost knocked me over with a hug. "Awww girl, I am so happy for you guys! I knew you would be together, you two were just so perfect for each other!" Tails and I gave each other a look. Guess we were always more compatible than we thought. Sonic smirked, getting up and walking to us. "Congratulations, buddy," he said, giving Tails a fist bump. "She was a great choice." Tails smiled. "She sure was," he said, winking at me. "The perfect choice." This made me blush and smile like mad. Tails sure was the charmer..

Earlier that morning, we had called up our friends and planned a get-together at the Chili-Dog restaurant. We wanted to tell everyone the great news and have a little fun. We all met at Sonic's house before, though. Tails figured that it would be a better place to spill the beans, and I had to agree. Especially seeing Amy's thrilled reaction..

"Who is ready for some celebratory Chili Dogs?" Knuckles asked, after everyone had finished talking about us. We all agreed, and as we started out the door I heard Sonic yell "Lunch is on me, guys!" This would be fun, hanging out and eating chilidogs, just as we had done when we gained a victory in a battle against an enemy. Just like the old days.

Tails POV

When we reached Chuck's ChiliDogs, Sonic's uncle Chuck greeted us at the door. "Hey, unc," Sonic said, giving his uncle a bro hug. "Why hello my nephew! Looks like you brought the whole gang here today, huh?" He greeted all of us by name: "Tails, hello! Mina, Amy, Knuckles, Shadow and Silver, Blaze, Rouge, Cream and Cheese, Vec, Charmy, Espio.." We all greeted him with enthusiasm. All of us loved Uncle Chuck.. after he had survived the war against Robotnic, escaped his roboticized form and came back as a normal hedgehog, we were introduced to him. He treated us like family from the very start.. he was always there for me when I was struggling with losing my parents. I could never repay him enough for that.

Chuck found us a big table and had us seated before he took our orders. We ordered our usual, Chili-Cheese Dogs and soda for every one of us. His waiters came out with a giant tray of chilidogs and drinks, and we all chowed down. As I basically swallowed my food whole (Chuck's Chili-Dogs were the best in the world) I zoned out. I thought about yesterday and how I had lost control out of nowhere and attack Mina. She told me that it was okay, she trusted me.. but I felt as if she shouldn't. I was worried that next time, I could actually harm her. Or worse, I could.. no. I couldn't bring myself to say that word, even in my mind. I couldn't imagine it at all. I didn't think I could live with myself if that happened. What was this thing? What did it want from me? Why did it feed off of rage, and why did it take Ash-

I snapped out of my state as I felt Mina's hand on my knee. I looked over to her. She looked worried as she asked "Are you okay?" I thought for a moment.. this was my time with her, this was my time to throw all worries away and have fun. With this, I gave her a warm smile and took her hand under the table. "Yeah," I answered, and she smiled back. This was an amazing feeling.. us being together. I loved it so much..

Chuck came over to our table with the bill, and Sonic gave him the money before any of us could react. "Thank you all for coming out today," Chuck said to us, sliding some money toward Sonic. As always, he payed for half of our meal himself. We all thanked him with a smile and made our way to the outside of the restaurant.

Mina's POV

Tails and I walked hand in hand, and it felt so strange and beautiful at the same time. It seemed as if he put off an energy that was much different than Ash's... I could feel the warmth, love, trust and happiness when my hand touched Tails' hand. When I held Ash's hand, all I could feel was hatred, anger, lies, and.. evil. It was definitely a nice change.

Our peaceful walk was suddenly interupted when a woman screamed "HELP!" We stopped and looked to where the sound came from. A young woman ran up to us, dressed in a formal outfit that looked uncomfortable. "My store was robbed! He was in a black and white-striped outfit, and he is getting away!" She pointed in the direction of the coffee shop, and sure enough a guy that fit her description was sprinting down the street with a giant bag. Sonic comforted her with a "Don't worry, Ma'm. We got this." And sped after the robber. The rest of us followed after him, ready to kick some bad-guy butt.

Tails' POV

Something wasn't quite right with this robber. He seemed way too... fast. Sonic was having a hard time catching up to him, and that was never a good sign. Sonic called back to us, ordering a split-up. "We have to surround him!" We all took his order and split into groups. Mina followed me, and at that moment my priority changed: Protect her from that guy if he was dangerous. But I wasn't worried. I knew Mina could fend for herself, she was pretty bad-ass.

We sped through backstreets, looking for the thief. Suddenly, Mina spotted him. "Over there!" she pointed, and I looked over to see that he was.. on top of a building. How he got up there, I had no idea. But I knew one thing was for sure: He was mine now.

I took Mina's hands and used my tails to fly up to the roof of the city building, quickly but quietly. I didn't want him to know I was there just yet. He would find out soon enough.

When we reached the roof, the robber was kneeling and searching the bag. He was facing away from us, so I landed silently and watched as he pulled different items from the bag and observed them lovingly. I heard him talking to himself, saying something like "These beauts are mine, now. Ain't nobody gonna catch me from up 'here." With his words I smirked and crossed my arms. "Actually, buddy," I stated, and he quickly jerked around, startled. "You have it all wrong. You see.." I started toward him, and he shoved everything back in the bag and backed away from me. "Cheaters _never_ win."

The theif pulled out a gun and pointed it to me, his finger ready to pull the trigger. "We'll see about that, Fox." As his finger pulled down the trigger, I heard the click of an empty gun. Suddenly, the robber grunted and fell to the ground, dropping the gun. I grinned as Mina bent down and picked up the gun, looking over it. "Nice choice, but maybe next time you should try reloading it. Just a tip." The villan tried to get up, and I flew over and gave him a nice punch in the jaw. That put him to sleep. Mina and I stood there, smiling at each other. "We sure do make a great team, huh?" I said, and she nodded in agreement. "Yep," she replied, taking my hands and leaning toward me slowly. As our lips were about to meet, a loud scream interupted us. A familiar voice screamed "NO!" and Mina and I looked down below us to the ground, where we saw someone we had never expected to see again. My heart dropped at her next words: "THEY TOOK MY SON! THEY TOOK JIMMY!"

Hello everyone! First of all, I apologize for my absence! Leaving you all on a beautiful moment on that was just.. cruel. That is why I had to make this chapter extra intense and juicy. And of course.. CLIFFHANGER! I love them but hate them at the same time :'D

Updates will hopefully be every day from now on. I can't promise, but I will try!

Tails and Mina are together, and they have told their friends. We got to meet Uncle Chuck, and our heroes ate Chili-Dogs and fought a bad guy!

And now.. someone took Jimmy? Only one word I can say... DRAMA!

Please, Please, PLEASE! Any feedback, comments, thoughts, ideas... COMMENTS PEOPLE! I read every one, and I even may use your ideas in later chapters. You never know! And of course, I will give shout-outs when I use ideas.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you next installment!

~Fangirling~


	16. Shadowed

Chapter 16- Shadowed

Mina's POV

"JIMMY!" Tails and I froze, staring at each other with wide eyes. We knew that voice, and that name- our biggest fan was in trouble. Tails took my hand and took off, heading for the ground. While we were in the air, I searched for any sign of Jimmy. A flash of black caught my eye, and sure enough I saw two shadows taking off with a small fox. "Down there!" I yelled up to Tails, and he dived toward the ground. When our feet hit the surface, Jimmy's mom rushed to us in tears. "Tails, Mina, please, they got my son.. please you have to help my son!" Tails put his hand on her shoulder, giving her a reassuring "Don't worry. We will get him back to you safely and unharmed." He looked back to me and added "You can count on us." Through her tears, she gave him a small smile. "I know I can," she said, and Tails let go of her shoulder. "Let's do this Mina," he said, and I followed him as he went after the evildoers.

As we neared the shadows, we heard the plea for help coming from the small fox. Tails suddenly stopped, and I followed suit. I looked around him and saw that the two shadows.. were actually shadows. They had a shape that I could not identify as they lurked in, well.. the shadows. My eyes darted to the ground, where little Jimmy was curled up into a ball and shaking in fear. He didn't look injured, so that was a good start..

Jimmy looked up when he heard us approaching, and I saw the fear in his eyes. When he saw us, his eyes quickly filled with surprise. "Tails! Mina! Please, save me from these evil shadow people!" Tails looked down at him, worried. "Jimmy, are you hurt buddy? Did they hurt you?" Jimmy shook his head. "No Tails, I am okay, but the shadows, they want to hurt you!" His words were followed by a deep, evil laugh from one of the shadows. "Well, well. Look who it is." I watched in shock and confusion as a dark wolf creature stepped out of the wall. Tails reflexively put out his arm to shield me. The wolf laughed again, this time sounding more shrill. "The master was right- the kid was good bait to lure you here. We all figured that the minute someone was in trouble, you would come _running."_ I looked up at Tails, who was glaring at the creature. "What do you want from me?" he stepped back, moving closer to me. The wolf noticed his movement, but didn't react. "I am surprised you don't know," he answered, shaking his head. "I figured the master would have started communicating with you at this point. It was all part of his master plan, after all." Tails looked just as confused as I felt at this. "What are you talking about?" Tails asked, his voice sounding pressured. "What master? And why would it be communicating with me?" This time, the creature was surprised. "You hadn't told him yet, master? I thought you had all of this planned out." Tails was angry now, and I felt his fists clench. It was about to get intense.

The wolf took a step toward Tails. "I guess it is my place to inform you of the master at this point. You have been affected.. a dark entity that has fed off of your rage, correct? When you are enraged, you are not in control.. correct?" My heart dropped. If this thing knew what was happening to Tails, then he must have been to blame for it. Tails tensed up as he replied "What have you done to me?" The creature shook his head yet again. "Wrong, Fox. It is not I who has affected you.. it is the master." Both Tails and I stared at the wolf. The master... who in the Hell...

Suddenly, Tails lost it. He fell to his knees, growling in pain as he transformed into his dark form. I watched in fear of him having lost control again. As he stood up, however, he ignored me as he rushed toward the wolf creature in rage. The wolf had no time to react before Tails was on top of him, clawing away at him. I caught a glimpse of the other shadow, ready to come out of the wall. Just before Tails was ambushed by another creature, the wolf suddenly ordered it to stay hidden. This confused Tails for just a moment, giving the wolf time to escape.

The wolf slipped out of Tails' grasp, motioned for the other shadow to leave, and dissapeared into his shadow form. As Tails kneeled and gasped for breath, I looked all around to make sure they were truly gone. There was no sight of either shadow.. so I felt that it was safe to head toward Tails with caution. I slowly walked over to Jimmy, allowing Tails time to cool off as I kneeled down and checked on him. "Are you okay, little guy?" I asked, and Jimmy just stared at me for a moment before jumping up in excitement. "That..was... AWESOME! Tails can turn into a dark monster dude? That is so COOL! He kicked that shadow's butt, clawing him to pieces! BEST MOMENT OF MY LIFE!" I sat back and smirked as I watched Jimmy run and jump around, talking about how awesome heroes are and how amazing it was to watch the battle and how lucky he was to be saved by his biggest heroes. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tails pull himself up. I jumped up off of the ground and walked toward him- but still with caution.

Tails' POV

The Master. That is all the wolf creature could tell me. His "Master" was the cause of my rage problems, his "Master" was the cause of me almost killing Mina. But how? Who was this master? Who were the shadows, and what did they want from me..

I sensed Mina walking up behind me, and I turned around to face her. She gave me a smile when she saw that I was myself again. I smiled back. "Sorry for that.. I just kind of lost control when he wouldn't tell me what was happening. Obviously I am not so patient now-a-days, huh?" This made her laugh, and I had to join in. The truth was, It wasn't my patience that caused that. After he mentioned the word "Master" something inside me just.. snapped. Like it was answering to the calling.. but I didn't want to freak Mina out.

Little Jimmy ran up to me, and I opened my arms for him to jump in. Mina joined us in a big group hug, and we stayed like that for quite awhile. Finally, I broke the silence. "I'm sorry if I scared you back there, Jim." His eyes widened at this, and I knew what he was about to say. "Scared me? NO WAY! IT WAS SO WICKED!" Mina giggled as he went into another long story about how awesome it was to watch me turn into a giant scary dark monster fox. I guess it was a good thing that he enjoyed it so much, I didn't want to scar the kid for life..

After our hug ended, we decided to head back to Jimmy's mom. He sat on my shoulders, and Mina held my hand as we walked. My heart warmed and I smiled. It felt as if we were a.. family. And that was one of the best feelings I had ever had. Mina saw my face light up, and she squeezed my hand. I looked over to her to see that she was smiling, too. "I know.. it is amazing." It made me happy to know that she felt the same way.

When Jimmy's mom saw us walking toward her, she ran toward us. I set Jimmy down, and he sprinted to meet his mom. She hugged him tightly to her body, tears of happiness streaming down her face as rocked him back and forth. "Oh, my baby, you are okay!" As we approached her, she squeezed both of us. "Oh thank you thank you thank you! You saved my baby, I am so grateful!" We both told her it was nothing, and we were happy to help. "Glad to know that Jimmy is safe now," I said, ruffling his hair. His mother smiled and whispered something in Jimmy's ear. Jimmy nodded and jumped into our arms, thanking us and hugging us. "You are welcome, Buddy," I said, giving him a wink. "When you get older, don't forget that I saved you a spot for the leader of the New Freedom Fighters!" This made him happy. Mina told him to make sure he visited us often, and he agreed and promised as we handed him back to his mom. "Thank you again, you two. I could never repay you for what you have done today." Both of them waved as they walked toward their home. Almost as soon as they left, Sonic and the others caught up with us. "Hey you two, I heard about what you did! Nice job saving that kid. He would've been a goner without you guys." Sonic gave us both a hug and a fist bump. He explained, with the help of knuckles, that there had been other robbers loose, and that they had gone after them while we fought the one on the roof. It sounded like today was a good day for us freedom fighters to be out on the town.

Everyone else headed home, leaving Mina and I standing alone together. I figured she was going to head home, so I offered to walk her there. "Um, actually," she said, and I was hopeful. "I was wondering if.. it would be okay if.. I came over to your place again." I smiled. That sounded great to me. "Of course, Mina. Always." And with that, we started home, hand in hand.

The mystery of the Master was still in my hands. I had no idea what was hidden in the shadows. But the fact that I had Mina by my side now made everything better. I felt like I could get through anything with her.

And I would get through this. For her.

Hey everybody! Sorry for the.. lazy chapter. I was tired and running dry on ideas.. but hopefully it was still any enjoyable chapter!

Some more action, Tails and Mina moments, and the family! Of course, there is some mystery with the "Master". And what about the shadow creatures? The wolf? WHAT IS HAPPENING!

Hopefully next chapter will be better written, more exciting and less dry. I will try my best!

YOU can help! Comment Feedback/Opinions/Suggestions, I read ALL, I repeat ALL of them!

Thank you for reading, and see you next installment! 

~Fangirling~


	17. Stars in Our Eyes

Chapter 17- Stars in Our Eyes

Mina's POV

By the time we reached Tails' house, it was just past evening. We both crashed on the couch right away. Being a hero could be exhausting sometimes.

After a moment of relaxation, Tails got up from the sofa and headed toward the kitchen. "Are you hungry or thirsty?" He asked, and I answered "Both." He returned only a few seconds later with a bag of chips and two cans of soda. "We can share," he said as he sat down. I shoved about a handful of chips into my mouth, questioning at that moment if I _really_ wanted to share them. "I don't know if we can share these, I might eat them all. Tails laughed quietly, pulling the bag away from me. "Then I guess I'm going to have to just keep these then," he said. I immediately reached for the chips, but he held them away from me. "Heyy!" I exclaimed, standing up and trying to grab the bag, but to no prevail. Tails also stood up now, facing me but holding the chips away. He smirked at my pouting face, and he couldn't help but laugh a bit. "Awww, my poor Mina. You want the chips? Come get them." He was now in the air, smiling down at me. Ooo, it was on now.

Tails stuck out his tounge, teasing me. Little did he know, he couldn't get away with it for long. As I dived toward him, he sped past me. I looked around, but he was nowhere to be seen. "Tails?" I asked, confused. I was startled when two arms wrapped around my waist. I was now in the air, being held up by Tails. He had set the chips down on the couch, and I was now looking down on them. I looked back at him, and he was smirking again. "Now what are you going to do?" He asked tauntingly. I knew exactly what I was going to do. I was desperate.. I wanted those chips. I turned myself around and quickly kissed Tails on the lips. Because I wanted to... and because I knew it would give me a chance to escape. Hey, this was all for fun, right?

After we separated, I slipped out of his arms and fell backwards onto the couch before he could even react. I scooped up the bag with my arms. "Haha! Now look who has the power!" Tails looked stunned for a minute, but then he smiled. "I guess you do now," he replied, and I found myself smiling too. 

Tails flew down and scooped me up into his arms again, only this time he held me bridal-style. We were both laughing by the time we were in the air again, completely forgetting our playful chip war. After we had both stopped laughing, Tails said, out of nowhere: "Mina, you are beautiful." I felt my face grow red as I looked him in the eyes. He looked me in the eyes, too.. and it felt as if I were mesmerized as I whispered "You are pretty good-looking yourself.." At this, he blushed a little too. _Dang, he is adorable,_ I thought to myself as I leaned toward him. He leaned toward me and we shared a long, slow kiss. It was the most amazing kiss I had ever experienced.. he held me tightly in his arms as he kissed me and I kissed him, our lips moving together as one. This is what I had always wanted.. someone like Tails. Someone true.

Tails POV 

When that beautiful moment ended, I lowered to the ground. I stared at Mina, blushing like crazy. I was worried that she didn't feel the same way about me anymore.. with everything that had been happening lately, me being possessed and turning dark every-time I got angry, attacking her when I lost control... who knew, I could have been a really bad kisser. All this must have shown through my eyes, because Mina suddenly grinned and ruffled my hair. "Look at you.. all flushed. You don't have to be nervous, you know.. you are quite amazing at kissing." She must have felt my heartbeat speed up, because she laughed and added "You are so cute." At this, I smiled. She was right.. I shouldn't have been nervous anymore. With this thought in mind, I put Mina down and replied "And you are adorable." She hugged me. "Tails.. we haven't gotten much time together since you asked me to be your girlfriend." I thought about this for a moment, and realized that she was right. We hadn't gotten much time together at all. "We need to change that," I said, and I took her hand. I led her to my workshop, I had something great in mind for her.

Mina's POV

Tails led me to his workshop. I loved being in there, it was always so cozy.. especially for a workshop. He sat me down in his workchair and went over to his bench. I watched him in wonder as he tweaked a few things with his wrench on a small, rectangular machine. After he had finished, he stood up, grabbed a remote and walked back over to me. He was grinning down at me now. "I have a surprise for you," he said, and I smiled. "Tails, you don't need to-" he shook his head. "Please, I installed it a while back, and I have been waiting to show you it for forever now. This is the perfect time to show you.. so please cover your eyes." I reluctantly obeyed, placing my hands over my eyes. "Thank you," Tails said, and I heard a beep as something opened above me. After a minute, Tails told me to open my eyes. When I looked up, my jaw dropped in amazement. It was... a skylight. A giant balcony on the roof of the tall workshop that looked over the beautiful ocean water. You could see every single star in the sky. "Tails.. this... is .. amazing. Absoulutely amazing, you built that?!" He nodded, a giant smile forming on his face. "I sure did. I am glad you think it is amazing, but just wait until you see the view from up there." He told me to wait as he headed to the kitchen to grab a few things. He returned with a handful of snacks and random stuff that I could not identify from this angle. He led me up a staircase that he built up to the balcony. When we reached the top, I could not believe my eyes. It looked over the beautiful shimmering ocean that was illuminated by the perfect sunset. Tails set everything down and came up beside me. "Isn't it beautiful?" he asked, and all I could do was nod and murmur "Yes.." We both sat down on the balcony, staring into the distance.

Tails pulled a bottle from his pile of random things. He opened the bottle and pulled out a small wand. He dipped the wand into the bottle and held it up in front of his face. When he caught me staring at him , confused, he just smiled and blew air on the wand. A bunch of small, perfect bubbles flew threw the wind and dissapeared over the water. He was blowing.. bubbles. "It is peaceful and calming," he said, and repeated the action, only this time he blew bigger bubbles. I watched them float out through the air. He handed the bottle to me, and I took it with hesitation. "Go on, try it." I coated the wand with soap and blew what must have been millions of tiny bubbles. I watched again in amazement as the bubbles flew out toward the setting sun. Tails was right.. this was peaceful and relazing. We continued taking turns, blowing bubbles and watching them float over the ocean.

When we were almost out of bubble soap, we decided to take a break from bubble-blowing and instead look at the stars that were now coming out. I cuddled closer to Tails, and he held on to me as we looked at each star. "Look, Mina," Tails said suddenly, pointing at a group of stars in the sky. "It looks like a chaos emerald." Sure enough, there was an emerald constellation in the sky. I found another one that looked like a guitar, and soon we were pointing out many different star patterns. This was amazing.. I was the best guy in the world's girlfriend. We were sitting on a balcony, overlooking an ocean and stars together. We were cuddled up and cozy, right under the sky. It was the best time of my life.

Tails POV

"Tails?" I stopped pointing at the sky and looked over at Mina. "Yes?" I asked. She looked up at me with a smile on her face. "Thank you for this.. it was the best night of my life." Her words made me the happiest guy in the universe. Knowing that I had made this the best night for her.. was all I could ask for. Not to mention the fact that it was also the best night of _my_ life. I hugged her closer as I replied "Don't thank me, please. I love spending time with you, and I figured this would be one of the best ways to spend time together. Thank _you_ Mina.. for making me the happiest on the planet." She giggled. "Silly Tails," she said, looking back up at the stars. "Of course.. you deserve it." I smiled up at the stars. She truly was the best in the world.

Mina's head had been against my shoulder for awhile, and I checked to see if she was asleep. She looked like she was drifting off to sleep, so I told her I was going to carry her to bed now. I lifted her into my arms and walked to my room. I placed her into my bed, pulling the blankets over her. After she looked comfortable, I kissed her on the forehead. "Goodnight, honey," I whispered, smiling at her peaceful and adorable sleeping face. I thought she was asleep and was surprised when a smile formed on her face. "Goodnight, Tails," she said, and I started to walk away from the bed when she grabbed my arm. I turned around, startled. Her eyes were open, and she was looking right at me. "Can you.." she started blushing. "Can you.. stay with me tonight?" I turned all the way around. After a moment of thinking, I smiled. "Of course I can," I said, and she scooted over as I slid into my bed beside her. She smiled at me, and I smiled back. "Thank you, Tails," she said, and she scooted closer to me. "Goodnight." We cuddled for a few minutes, my arm around her and her hand caressing my face. I thought about our first kiss, and how she had caught me off guard. I thought about the feeling that we were a family when we were returning Jimmy to his mother. I thought about today, and how we had played keep-away with chips, how we blew bubbles, and how we watched the sunset over the ocean. I thought about the constellations, and about the amazing kiss...

As I drifted into sleep, I thought about how much my life had changed when Mina came into it. She was wonderful all around..

I truly loved her.

And I would go to the end of the world to protect her.


	18. Alyndus' Plan

Chapter 18- Alyndus' Plan

Tails' POV

When I opened my eyes, I was half blinded by the sun- illuminated ceiling. Yawning, I looked down at Mina and smiled. She was cuddled up into my chest, sound asleep and peaceful. She looked adorable when she slept, almost like a baby..

I decided to lay still for a few more moments while I thought about my plan. I needed to look into whatever was inside of my body and find a way to contact this "master". I needed to get rid of this before something bad happened. Maybe I could get its attention with the emeralds..

I carefully lifted Mina off of my chest and placed her flat on the bed before sliding out and pulling the blanket back over her. I snuck out to my workshop, flipping on all of the lights and switching on the chaos charger (a machine that I built to contain the chaos emeralds). My plan was to use some of the energy to bring the soul out of my body. Once the machine was ready, I took one of the emeralds out and held it in my hand. _Here goes nothing,_ I thought to myself as I closed my eyes and spoke the emerald tongue that Knuckles had taught me. Chaos energy coursed through my arms, then down to my chest and stomach and the rest of my body. After I had felt like the power was distributed everywhere, I opened my eyes. I felt.. stronger. More alive. But of course, this didn't last long as a sharp pain shot through my chest. I clutched my chest and groaned in pain as the dark soul ripped through my body. I was blinded for a moment. When I could see again, my eyes scanned the room until they stopped on a dark form in the air. It was a floating dark mist, and I watched as it took form. I glared at the soul as it was now a dark version of me. It smirked at me, it's arms crossed. This would be fun.

"Look at you. You finally figured it out. A dark master has taken over you, sucking the life out of you. And now you want to talk with me." The evil soul spoke in a dark, sarcastic voice. My fists clenched as I asked "What do you want with me?" The fox in front of me laughed, shaking his head. "Someone with your IQ should have figured this out by now," it said, starting toward me. "You see, Fox.. My minions and I have escaped Eternal Hell in the dark world. We wanted revenge, recognition, power over the ones who trapped us in pain for years. I discovered that sucking the life out of the forms on this planet not only made them weaker, but also made us stronger. I wanted more power.. more.. power.. so I can become the most powerful being in this universe and rule the helpless stupidity to their own Hell! I will make them all suffer.. the worthless animals and their offspring. The lifeforms of this planet will experience the pain that I had felt when I was banished to the dark world!" The soul laughed, his voice full of evil and lust. I growled, disgusted by the wishes of this thing. Power and control over Mobius.. he wanted to torture everyone, make them live in an endless pool of pain while he took control over the universe...

"Anyway, Fox.. While I was searching for a host, I discovered you. I could feel the chaos energy coming from your body.. I knew it would be a challenge, but it was worth it. If I gained control of the chaos energy, I would be more powerful than any being in this universe. Alyndus.. the most powerful darklord. Not to mention the fact that you had.. weaknesses." I felt a chill run down my spine at these words. "What do you know about my weaknesses?" I asked quietly. Everything suddenly went dark again as the soul dissapeared in a whirlwind of energy. I could hear his dark voice around me as he replied "I know _all_ of your weaknesses, Miles Prower. Such as... this." I heard a _snap_ and I was now surrounded by a group of moaning, screeching spirits. Their eyes were blood red, and their mouths were giant holes in the middle of their faces. I felt cold sweat drip off of my body, my heart beating faster and faster. He knew. Ghosts were one of my biggest weaknesses..

"And don't forget-" There was another snap as a bright lightning bolt cracked below the roof. I was trembling now, uncontrollably. I tried to block everything out as I covered my ears with my hands and closed my eyes, sinking to the ground. I could hear his evil laugh ringing through the air. I wanted to scream as I felt everything move closer and closer..

Everything suddenly went silent. I slowly opened my eyes to see the dark fox looking to the door. I heard Mina's voice ask "Tails, are you in there?" The soul sighed and looked at me. "Looks like the fun is over for now, Kid. But don't worry.. Alyndus will be back soon. I'm not finished with you yet.." And with a flash, he was ripping through my chest again. It felt just as it had the first time..

Mina threw open the door. When she saw my condition, she gasped and ran toward me. Dropping of her knees in front of me, she lifted my face up to look at her. "Oh my God, Tails? Are you okay?" I pulled myself up to meet her, trying to catch my breath as I nodded. "Yeah.. Yes, I am fine. I'm okay." She looked worried as she looked over my arms and chest. "What.. in the Hell.. happened?" She did deserve to know. I didn't want to frighten her, but.. she needed the truth. "The thing inside me.. I contacted it with a chaos emerald." Her jaw dropped as she asked "Whattt?" I continued. "Yeah.. it came out of my chest and took form as a dark version of me. It told me about its plan... it wants to suck the life out of everyone possible until he becomes the most powerful being in the universe. It will cause everyone pain and torture as it takes control of everything in this universe. It will not stop at nothing.. Mina, I have to stop it." She just stared at me for a moment. "Tails.. it is too dangerous. You can't do it alone. I have to stay with you and protect you-" My fist hit the ground as I instantly said "No." She looked startled, and I realized that I had almost lost control again. "Sorry.. but you can't. You have to stay here, where it is safe. I will not let you get in the middle of this, they could kill you." She looked at me, and I saw anger forming in her eyes. "So what, am I supposed to stay here while you are out there alone? They could kill you in an instant. I would not live with myself if I let that happen, Tails." I knew that I wasn't going to get through to her, so I instantly changed the subject.

"It's name is Alyndus." Her anger faded as she looked at me. "Huh?" she asked, confused. "What are you talking about?" I replied with "The soul. It calls itself Alyndus, the Dark Lord." She fully understood now. "So.. it actually has a name. All of the souls that have been drinking life from the citizens must take orders and follow that guy." I nodded. "Yeah, they do," I answered, thinking about the wolves we encountered before and what they told me about their "Master."

I started feeling a little queasy. Mina noticed my discomfort and quickly rushed to my aide. I told her that I was okay as I tried to stand up. I couldn't hold my balance and quickly fell back onto my knees. Everything started fading into a blur as my head felt light and my heart skipped a few beats. I heard Mina scream as I fell all the way to the ground. I saw the silhouette of Mina leaning over me, saying my name and trying to keep me awake. I tried my hardest to force my eyes open, but my attempt wasn't successful as my body went rigid and I lost all conciousness.

"Tails!"

Wow.

Just wow.

That was... a surprisingly easy chapter to write.

I went with the flow, and it did indeed flow together smoothly.

Now we know more about this soul inside Tails' body, and what it wants from our hero.

Alyndus knows Tails' deepest and darkest fears.. and uses them against him.

Mina wants to stick by Tails to help him rid of the dark souls..

Alyndus promised to return. He has unfinished business with Tails.

What just happened? Why did Tails just lose conciousness inside Mina's arms? Read the next chapter to find out! :)

Have a nice night everyone~

-Fangirling-


	19. Someone to Fight For

Chapter 19- Someone to Fight For

Mina's POV

" _Is he breathing?"_

I put my hand on Tails' stomach, waiting for it to rise and fall again. It was subtle, but I felt it.

"Yes," I told Sonic, and he sounded relieved when he replied _"Good."_

I didn't know what else to do, so I gave Sonic a call. I had to restrain myself from screaming when he finally picked up the phone, and instead I took a deep breath and said "Tails just passed out on the floor, I don't know why or how."

And that brought me to here. Sonic had just started telling me how to deal with this.

" _Okay, Mina. We need to figure out what is going on. I'll be right over, just stick with him and make sure he doesn't stop breathing. I'll try to see what's up, and if I can't help him we'll get him to the hospital."_

My eyes were burning now. I tried to keep my voice steady as I answered with "Okay, Sonic.. Okay."

I could hear him quickly whispering to Amy about the situation. _"We'll be there in 5,"_ He said, hanging up the phone.

I dropped my phone to the ground and looked at Tails. He was pale. After feeling his forehead, I winced at how hot he was. Fever..

I laid my head on his chest. After waiting for a few seconds, my heart dropped. I heard no thump. I lifted my head and felt his stomach again, he was definitely breathing. After listening again, I sighed in relief as I now heard a heartbeat.

When Sonic knocked on the door, I told him to come in. He ran in, followed by Amy.

"Oh my God" Amy gasped, dropping to her knees beside Tails just as Sonic did. "He looks horrible.."

"He is alive," Sonic concluded, scooping Tails up in his arms and standing.

"We should get him to the hospital, fast. I have no idea what's going on with him."

I nodded. "You are right," I replied, jumping up and following Sonic and Amy out the door.

Sonic and Amy were here.. they would know what to do.

Sonic ran at almost full speed, holding on to Tails tightly.

As I am pretty fast myself, I followed close beside him.

Amy trailed behind us as we ran through the streets.

When we finally reached the hospital, Sonic sped inside.

The nurse at the front desk made a phone call, and soon a bunch of doctors with a stretcher met us in the waiting room.

We followed the men as they wheeled Tails to a room. I tried to block out everything about this place.. white walls, yelling, beeping. I didn't even want to _think_ about Flat-Line right now...

When the doctors had Tails in a bed, they surrounded him. He was out of my view now. The doctors told us to wait outside, so Sonic led me into the waiting room.

I sat in a chair, silent and trying not to cry.

Sonic and Amy tried their best to comfort me, telling me how it would all be okay, he was in the doctors' hands now.

They were right.. he was in good hands.

I sat with my head in my hands, trying to think the best.

Sonic was beside me, reading a magazine while Amy rested her head on Sonic's shoulder. I was pretty sure she was asleep.

"Sonic," I blurted out suddenly, my voice shaking. "I'm scared."

He looked over at me, closing his magazine.

"I know," he said, putting his arm around me. "So am I."

I looked down. He noticed, and started again.

"You don't have to worry, Mina."

I looked back up at him. He smiled at me and said "Tails is a fighter. He will make it through, like he always does."

He was right, Tails was one of the bravest and strongest people I knew.

"I know he will come back, good as new," Sonic continued, "Especially now that he has someone to fight for."

This made my heart feel warm. Someone to fight for.. me?

I felt my face warm as I smiled. Sonic winked at me.

"Tails isn't giving up until he loses you, Mina."

And with this, he went back to reading the magazine.

I opened my mouth to say something, but I was interrupted by a doctor.

"Sonic, Mina, Amy?"

I was on the edge of my seat, Sonic closed his magazine, and Amy lifted her head off of Sonic's shoulder.

The doctor motioned for us to follow him.

"Come with me, please."

We followed him down the hall, and I was nervous to see Tails. What did he look like now?

As we turned into Tails' room, the doctor started.

"Tails seems to be losing life and strength by the minute."

And there it is. That evil, evil thing inside him..

"Just like those other patients?" Sonic asked the doctor, his voice unsure.

The doctor nodded. "Exactly like those patients," he continued. "Except for one thing.."

We all looked at him nervously.

"It seems that whatever is causing it... has been affecting Tails for longer than it was the other patients."

Sonic and Amy looked concerned. It definitely had been affecting him for longer..

"He is okay, right?" I asked suddenly.

The doctor looked at me, perhaps startled.

"Yes and no," he answered firmly. "You see, he is alive.. but he is slowly losing his life. It seems, however, that Tails is.. fighting it.

My eyes widened, and I looked over at him. I clenched my fists as the doctor said his next words.

"He doesn't want to die. He is giving it all to fight this, though it should be impossible to do so."

He was fighting...

Sonic interupted my thoughts.

"Thank you, doc," he said, shaking the doctor's hand. "For everything."

The doctor smiled. "Of course, happy to help you all. I hope to see Tails get better. In the meantime.. stay with him for as long as you need." And with that, he walked out.

I sighed. It was time to tell Sonic and Amy about what was really happening.

"Guys," I stated, turning around to face them. "I have something to tell you."

And with that, I explained everything to them. The dark soul inside Tails' body, the way Tails lost control, the way he made Ash.. dissapear.

When I was done, Sonic and Amy just stared at me. Finally, Sonic sopke.

"..Wow. That sounds like.. a lot."

I nodded. "You could say that.."

Amy crossed her arms. "Mina, you should have told us sooner."

Sonic nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you guys should have given us a heads up. We are your friends.. we need to know these things."

I nodded. "Of course, I- we, are sorry. It won't happen again.. from now on, you guys'll know everything."

They gave each other a look, then looked back at me.

"Maybe not _everything."_ Sonic smirked. I rolled my eyes.

I walked over to Tails' bed. Sonic and Amy could see that I needed some time with him, and they headed to the cafeteria to hang out for awhile.

When they were gone, I took Tails' hand. It was clammy. He still looked paler than usual, and I could feel the heat coming off of him.

For the first time, I really thought of everything that was going on.

My boyfriend had been possessed, and the stupid thing was taking his life.

Taking him away from me, piece by piece..

Breath by breath..

heartbeat..by..heartbeat..

I remembered what Sonic had said earlier.

 _Tails will make it through,_ I told myself. _He is a fighter.._

And he had something to fight for.

He was fighting tooth and nail to survive.. for me.

I started to lose it, and my grip was tighter as my vision was blinded by burning tears. I let them slide down my face, letting go..

"Oh Tails.." I began sobbing into his chest. "I don't want to lose you.. I don't.. please.. don't leave me.."

As I continued to cry, something changed about Tails' heart rate. His heart was beating faster, and he started breathing louder and faster. I looked up at him, and noticed the sweat suddenly dripping from his forehead.

And then.. the beeping.

The beeping grew louder, faster, louder..

Suddenly a bunch of doctors rushed in, surrounding him and talking in a rush.

I couldn't hear what they were saying, and everything was going blurry.

Tails' heart rate was critically high.

I was losing him.

I have one thing to say about this chapter.

This was the Emotional Roller-Coaster chapter of this story. Or at least one of them.

Putting myself in Mina's shoes to write this chapter... I must admit, it crushed me at points.

But hey, it was worth it to write a chapter where you could really feel what Mina is feeling. Hopefully you could all really feel this one :)

I feel that this chapter was my favorite to write, even though it was full of feels. I think it went pretty well!

The end? Well.. We'll see.

I'm not going to say much about this one.

So, as always, Please comment for Feedback/Opinions/Thoughts/Suggestions! I have already made a few changes based on suggestions that people have given me, thank you to those of you who did suggest!

New writing style from now on.. it was a suggestion to make the story easier to read and to make the conversations flow better! ^

Thank you for reading.. I hope you enjoyed this heart-breaker.

Good night~

-Fangirling


	20. Bonded

Chapter 20- Bonded

Mina's POV 

I stared as the doctors surrounding Tails moved quickly, trying everything they could to slow his heart-rate. I couldn't move.. I was just waiting for the line to go flat.

I could hear a faint voice calling my name in the background, and I was aware of someone shaking me.

I remembered what Tails had promised me... that he would be okay through all of this. He wouldn't let the dark side win. And now, he was in a hospital bed, doctors surrounding him as the beeping of his life monitor got faster and faster. He was slipping away, all promises leaving with it.

"Mina!" I snapped back to reality, realizing that Sonic and Amy were beside me. They both had been shaking me by the shoulder, trying to bring me back to the real world.

"He's.. dying.." I whispered, and Amy pulled me into a tight hug.

"Shh, it is okay sweetie," she whispered softly, running her hand down the back of my hair. "Everything will be okay.. the doctors have it under control."

Sonic stood behind Amy, watching the doctors as we spoke. He looked back to me.

"Don't worry, Mina," Sonic said. "He will be okay.. just like always."

I could see the worry in his eyes. I knew deep inside that even Sonic was worried that he might be wrong.

I looked over Amy's shoulder as a doctor looked back at me.

"His heart rate is not lowering," the doctor said, worried. I let go of Amy and stared at him, hopeful.

One of the other doctors said something, and he turned back around for a moment.

"The patient is whispering something," the doctor continued, and this made me gasp. I listened, but I couldn't hear his voice over the beeping.

"Mina." My heart dropped, and I stared at the doctor. "Y-yes, doctor?"

The doctor motioned for me to come over to the bed. "He wants you."

I rushed over to the bed, the doctors making room for me. Tails was breathing hard and fast, sweat running down his face. His body was twitching.. I bit my lip to keep from crying out.

"Take his hand." I looked down, and sure enough Tails' hand was out, waiting for me to take it. Did he know I was here?

I reached down and grabbed his hand, holding it tightly. I grimaced at how clammy it felt.

"Look, his heart-beat is slowing down!"

I listened, and sure enough the beeping had slowed down.

I glanced at Sonic, who gave me a small smile.

"You are calming him, Mina. He can feel the warmth of your hand, and it calmed him down."

The doctors all looked at each other, surprised looks in their eyes.

I looked back at Tails, who was now starting to look comfortable. He could feel me there.. and it was slowing down his panicking heart.

"Miles is in recovering condition," a doctor concluded. "We will keep an eye on him, but the rest of the time he will heal himself. We have done everything we can do for now."

As the doctors filed out of the room, we thanked them for their help. When the room was empty except for the 4 of us, I looked over at Amy and Sonic.

"It looks like you are keeping Tails alive now, Mina." Sonic grinned.

"Knowing you are safe and with him now is comforting him. The feeling of your hand in his is keeping him sane in there." Amy gave me a warm smile. "That is what true love looks like."

I blushed and looked down at Tails. It was like we were bonded by soul.. could it be True Love?

"It is getting late, I think I are going to bed down for the night," Sonic yawned.

Amy nodded in agreement. "Same here," she said, her voice exhausted.

"You guys go ahead and go home for the night, if you'd like. I will stay here with Tails and keep him company."

Sonic shook his head. "No, Mina. You need the rest, I will stay with him for the night and-"

I interupted him. "Thank you, Sonic, but... I can't leave him."

Sonic stared at me for a moment, and then nodded. "Of course, I get it. If that is what you want, that is how it will be."

I nodded, thankful. "Thank you, Sonic," I told him. "I promised Tails and myself that I would never leave his side." This was true.. I could never leave his side. I knew that he needed me right now.

"You are one of a kind, Mina," Sonic laughed warmly.

"You are truly a good friend, and a good lover. You have the purest heart, and you are honest and kind.. there is only one other person like that in this world."

He looked over his shoulder and winked at me. "That is what makes you two so perfect for each other."

After bidding me a goodnight and ensuring that I didn't need anything, both Amy and Sonic hugged me and left the room.

My face still felt hot from Sonic's words.

 _That is what makes you two so perfect for each other.._

Were we really perfect for each other?

I thought about Tails and me. We made a good team.. being with him gave me a feeling that I had never had before. And, above all.. I wanted to protect him.

And I had now realized that.. I would give my life to do this.

It was starting to look like we really were perfect for each other.

It was also starting to look like we were more than a good team.

Just as this thought came to my head, Tails eyes started twitching.

They opened slowly, looking right at me.

At first glimpse, a smile spread over his face. "Hey, Beautiful.."

I felt as if I was going to cry as I jumped up in joy and wrapped my arms around him.

"Oh, Tails! You are awake!"

His arms were around me, hugging me to him. "Mina.. I am so happy to see you."

I held him at arm's length, giving him a warm smile. "Not as happy as I am to see you," I said, and I leaned in and kissed him. I guessed I had surprised him, as he didn't kiss back at first. After he realized what was going on, he took my face in his hands and continued the kiss.

When we finally pulled away, Tails was looking at me in surprise.

"Wow.. that was.."

I blushed as I replied "Sorry.. I couldn't help it. I was worried about you.."

He shook his head. "Don't say sorry.. that was amazing." He smiled.

I suddenly yawned, and Tails scooted over in his bed. "You need some sleep, honey. Go ahead and join me if you want."

I graciously took his offer, sliding into the bed and pulling the blanket over myself. It was comfy.. and warm.

"Promise you will be here in the morning, awake and okay?" I whispered softly, turning to face him.

Tails laughed, giving me a kiss on the forehead. "I promise," he said, and I felt better.

"Goodnight, Mina."

I yawned again before snuggling in beside him. "Goodnight, sweetheart."

The night slowly faded as I fell asleep, praying in my mind that Tails would wake up again tomorrow.

Tails' POV

I opened my eyes to see a heart monitor in front of me.

I tried to stretch but was not successful, the wires connected to my arms holding me back.

Boy, I love hospitals.

I smiled as Mina opened her eyes. "Good morning," I said.

She smiled too and replied "Good morning, Tails."

I knew that she was happy to see that I was actually able to wake up today.. by the sound of it that had really worried her.

"Sonic and Amy will want to see you today," Mina said as she slid out of bed and slipped her boots back on.

Sonic and Amy always worried when things went wrong. They were protective.. what could I say? I had a brother and a sister who always looked out for me.

"Sounds good," I said, sitting up. "But what about our alone time?"

Mina giggled and crawled back onto the bed.

"We will get some later, I promise. Besides.." She leaned toward my face. "I am not going anywhere.."

Just as her lips touched mine, there was a knock on the door.

Both of us jumped, Mina almost falling off of the bed. We looked over at each other, both of our faces red.

"Uh- Come in!" Mina called, sliding off of the bed and standing beside me. The door opened, Sonic and Amy both walking in.

"Tails!" Both exclaimed at the same time, rushing to me. I was attacked with hugs from both of them, listening as they both rambled on about worrying and how I almost died and how I should never, EVER do that to them again. It was great to be back.

After I caught up with Sonic and Amy, the doctor came in to check up on me.

"You seem to be recovering quickly," the doctor concluded after checking everything.

Mina looked happy, and I smiled too. "That is great, I am ready to get out of this bed."

We all laughed, including the doctor. After asking a few questions and giving me more info, the doctor went out of the room and left us to talk.

When he was gone, Sonic asked me if I was hungry.

"Actually, I am starving," I replied, and he grinned.

"I'm gonna stop at Uncle Chuck's to grab some chilidogs for everybody. Amy, care to join me?"

Amy agreed, and the two sped off to get lunch.

Mina and I were alone again.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, her voice sounding concerned. I looked over to her.

"I am feeling a lot better now, thank you. I am starting to gain some of my energy back."

She smiled at this. "That is wonderful!" she exclaimed, and I smiled at how happy she sounded.

She seemed relieved that I was bettering. It made me happy to know this.

Mina was truly everything I could ask for.

When Sonic and Amy returned, they found Mina cuddled up into my chest. She had fallen back asleep.

"Well, I will leave her chilidogs right here, for when she wakes up," Sonic said, placing the bag on the table beside my bed.

"Thanks, guys," I said, taking a big bite of chili-dog. It tasted like the most delicious thing in the world at this moment, so I basically shoved the whole thing into my mouth.

"No problem at all," they both told me.

Sonic suddenly said "She must have been exhausted."

I smiled, looking up at him. "Yeah," I replied. "How much sleep has she gotten?"

Sonic shook his head. "Not much, she was too worried about you. She thought that she was going to lose you, Tails."

My heart skipped a beat. I worried her that much? I promised that I would never leave her..

But I couldn't keep that promise while on my death bed, could I?

"She never left your side." Sonic smiled. "She refused to leave, she said that she had promised herself and you that she would not leave you."

I blushed at this, looking down at Mina. She looked peaceful.

"You should have seen her, Tails.." Amy's voice sounded sad. "When your heart-rate started raising like crazy, she started losing it. She seriously thought that she was going to lose you.. and I don't think she was going to live without you." At this, I stared at her. If I had died in that moment.. would Mina have kept living?

"You two have more than a close relationship." Sonic swallowed his chilidog and looked straight into my eyes. "You have a rare bond. Neither one of you are complete without each other."

He was right. I couldn't live without her... and by the sound of it, she wouldn't live without me, either.

"Thank you guys.." I started, and both looked at me, surprised. "For taking care of Mina.. for comforting her and keeping her safe. I don't know what I would do if something had happened to her because of me."

Sonic winked at me. "Anytime, buddy. You are the only one who can truly take care of her, though."

I smiled at this. I would take care of Mina for as long as I lived... protecting her from everything.

I would never let anything happen to her. And if I had to..

I would give my life to ensure Mina's safety from this monster inside me.

With this thought, I kissed Mina on the cheek. Her cheek was warm.. had she been blushing?

Sonic and Amy headed to the lobby to get some coffee, and while they were gone I thought about Alyndus. He knew all of my weaknesses...

Mina...

If Alyndus truly knew my biggest weakness, then Mina was in danger.

And that was something I could not live with.

It's about to get real.

The battle is about to begin! Tails now has to protect Mina from Alyndus.

Alyndus knows that Tails' biggest fear is losing Mina. Will he go after Mina? Keep reading to find out ;)

Tails finally woke up, hurray! Sonic told Tails all about how much Mina cares for him.

Mina is struggling with her feelings for Tails.. is she in love with him?

The battle against Alyndus, Tails and Mina's relationship and Tails' dark side.. all of this will come into play next in the LAST FEW CHAPTERS!

It's happening now.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! If you are new to this fic, please favorite so you can hear all about the updates! YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS OUT!

Comment Feedback/Opinions/Thoughts/Suggestions!

Good day~

-Fangirling

(I was exhausted, so this ending was pretty lazy, sorry!)


	21. Uprising

Chapter 21- Uprising

Mina's POV

"You need to eat something, Mina."

I reluctantly took the bagel from Sonic's hand and took a bite. It was warm.. and delicious.

Amy handed me a cup of coffee. "You're favorite," she said, winking. I took a sip. Caramel iced Frappaciouno. I gave her a smile, she knew me well.

"He fell back asleep, huh?" Sonic motioned to Tails, who was snoring softly.

I nodded. "He must be exhausted after having the life sucked out of him."

I looked back at my boyfriend. He was frowning.. was he stressing about something?

My thoughts were interrupted when the watch on Sonic's wrist started beeping. He pressed a button and spoke into it.

"What's up?"

A familiar voice replied "Sonic, we need some backup down here." It was Shadow.

"What is going on?" Amy asked, standing beside Sonic and peering down at his wrist.

"Metropolis is being overrun by a bunch of weird monsters. We have taken some of them down, but.."

Knuckles was talking now, and he sounded urgent.

"Sonic, we need your help to hold these guys off, there are too many of them." Now Silver.

Sonic gave Amy a look, and they both nodded.

"We will be there in a flash," Sonic answered.

I heard Knuckles yelling as he clobbered the monsters in the background, and Silver was chanting as he used telekinesis. There were growls as the monsters neared them.

"Damnit, they are closing in," Shadow growled. I heard the power charge up in his hand.

"CHAOS CONTROL!" He yelled, and the call cut out.

"Lets get moving, Amy." Sonic started heading for the door, followed by Amy.

"Mina, stay here and keep an eye on Tails. We will be back as soon as-"

I interrupted him. "I can't just stay here when you guys are out there fighting. I want to come with you."

Sonic and Amy both shook their heads. "Tails would want you to stay here, where it is safe."

They were right.. Tails wouldn't be too happy with me if I joined them in battle.

"I can't put you in danger, Mina.. It would be a betrayal toward Tails." Sonic looked at me, firm.

I wanted to fight with my friends.. but they had extra backup. If they were in too much trouble, I would join them.

"Okay. You are right.. I will stay here and keep an eye on him." I sat down on the bed with Tails. "Be careful out there, you two.. and if you need any more help, give me a buzz."

Sonic nodded, and Amy gave me a smile.

"See ya, Mina," Sonic said.

"Bye, Mina!"

And both were gone.

Sonic's POV

What a day.

First, my best friend was hospitalized because some evil idiot was literally sucking his life away.

Second, there were no donuts left in the cafeteria.

And now, Monsters were invading Metropolis and giving the team some crap.

It was still early, and I already wanted to go to bed.

Amy and I had arrived at the city, and boy was it a party. A bunch of black, wolf-like things were roaming the streets. Okay then.

"Sonic, over here!"

I ran in the direction of Knuckles voice. Him, along with Shadow and Silver, were surrounded by wolves. I nodded to Amy, and we both jumped right over the monsters and joined our friends.

"Thanks for coming, guys," Silver said. "They were starting to give us some trouble."

There were at least a dozen wolves in front of us. What looked like the leader of the pack glared at me with his white, souless eyes. Creeeppyyy.

"Where in the Hell did these even come from?" I asked, punching one in the face as it lunged toward me.

"We don't know," Shadow answered as he kicked another to the ground. "I have my suspicions that they are some kind of shapeshift creatures. I saw a few turn into other animals."

Silver used his psycokinesis and sent one flying. "Their primary form is the wolf, though." A few lunged toward him, and I jumped in to help.

We fought them off the best we could, each of us using all of our strength to keep them from ripping our throats out.

"Sonic, behind!" I flipped backwards on Amy's command, now behind the wolf. Amy ran past me and smashed its head in with her hammer.

"Nice one," I grinned. She grinned back. We were doing pretty great against these losers.

I looked over to see Silver launch Knuckles at a group of monsters. Knuckles hit the ground and spun with his fists out, knocking out all of the jerks around him.

Shadow was blasting the wolves with chaos energy, only using Chaos Control when necessary.

By the looks of it, we were winning.

Of course, my big, fat mouth jinxed us all when a giant hole in the sky formed and a bunch of dark orbs started flying out.

We were suddenly bombarded with a whole new load, only this time the things were... clones. Of who, you may ask? Well, my fine friends.. of us.

In front of us were darker versions of Knuckles, Silver, Shadow, Amy, and myself. They stared us down with their creepy eyeballs.

"Great," Knuckles growled under his breath. "Looks like we can't catch a break."

The clone of me lunged forward, and a fight broke out.

I dodged spin attacks, punches, and kicks from my clone. It was like fighting Metal Sonic.. only creepier.

After I landed a few punches, my clone got ticked. It floated up into the air, spinning in place. Before I could react, it launched itself back at me, hitting me and sending me backwards.

I could hear the others struggling in the background.

I opened my eyes slightly to see Silver trying to use telekinesis to throw his clone, but his clone got the best of him and hit him with a car.

I pulled myself off of the ground and tried to walk toward him, but my clone held me back.

I watched as Shadow used Chaos control, only to have his clone break it and blast him with an unstoppable bolt of energy.

I looked over to Amy, who was dodging hammer attacks and trying to land a hit with her own hammer. Her clone dodged a ground smash, and Amy watched as it held down her hammer with its.. foot?

The monster Amy looked her in the eyes as it basically teleported itself behind her. I had no time to warn her as the clone summoned a hammer and smacked Amy in the back, sending her to the ground.

My clone laughed evilly as I struggled out of its grip. What was this dude's deal?

I turned around to face it. "What do you want?" I growled, and the clone just stared.

"My orders are to send all of you to our world. You will be dealt with accordingly when you arrive."

With those words, I turned back around as Silver started to dissapear in plain sight. I finally released myself from the clone's grip and punched it in the face. I rushed toward Silver, but before I got there he was gone.

I looked over to see Knuckles do the same before I could move.

I saw Shadow in the corner of my eye. "Shad!" I zoomed for him as he dissapeared.

And finally, I went for Amy. Reaching my hand out for her, I dived for her. I hit the ground as she materialized in front of my eyes. "Ames!" I yelled, but it was too late. They were all gone.

My evil clone laughed that same, creepy laugh as before. I turned around to face it.

"Where did you send them" I asked quietly.

My clone put out its hand. "Sonic, you foolish hedgehog," it spoke, and I wanted to punch its face in.

"I'll gladly take you to them."

And with that, everything started to dissapear around me as I poofed right there. Wherever I was going, I knew it couldn't be good. I knew one thing, though.

When I got there, there would be some Monster Butt- Kicking in order.

Mina's POV

Sonic and Amy weren't back, and I hadn't heard anything from either one of them. I was starting to worry..

I slowly stood up and walked over to the window, looking out. I gasped at the sight. The sky was darker, and I could've sworn that I saw a giant rip a little ways away.

 _Sonic and Amy.. please be okay._

I walked back over to Tails, who was still asleep. If it weren't for him, I would be out there fighting with the others. He cared about my safety so much.. if I were to get hurt out there, I knew he wouldn't take it lightly.

And if I were killed, God only knows. This was Tails..

 _Damnit Tails, why are you so dang lovable?_

I leaned down and gave him a light kiss on the lips. They were warm..

After I pulled away, I thought I saw Tails smile. I smiled and went to take his hand, but I stopped and went silent. I thought I had heard footsteps..

After listening for a second, I heard more footsteps. We weren't alone anymore.

I stood, cautiously looking around. I didn't see anyone, and nothing had been moved. I took a fork from Amy's untouched salad bowl and held it in front of me, ready to attack if I needed to.

I was about to let down my guard when I was suddenly grabbed from behind. I struggled to break free as arms wrapped around my neck and squeezed me. I tried to stab my abductor with the fork, but failed miserably.

Everything started to fade away as I lost the air-flow to my brain. I gasped for air, but to no prevail as I started to lose consciousness yet again. Whoever had ahold of me was trying to choke the life out of me.. and I couldn't stop it.

I tried to scream for Tails, but I couldn't get any words out.

I closed my eyes and my head slumped forward into my kidnapper's arms.

Hello there!

Once again, I am sorry for the long wait. Things have been busy, and I didn't have too much time (or energy) to update. But finally, I have returned!

I tried to make this chapter epic and exciting in return for the wait. Hopefully I succeeded!

Finally, things are speeding up as we are coming closer to the end. The battle has begun!

We got to see into Sonic's side of the story for a bit.. where did these "clones" send our heroes?

And Mina? I am not going to lie.. I was on edge while writing the abduction scene. My girl was kidnapped! But, by who? Well, why don't you stay for next chapter to find out ;)

All questions will be answered, all suspicions will be confirmed.. next time.

Please, comment on opinions/Feedback/Thoughts and more! I READ ALL OF THEM!

Thank you for reading, I pour my heart into this story.

See you all next time~

-Fangirling


	22. As Planned

Chapter 22- Proposition?

Mina's POV

I was lost.

I had no idea where I was, or what I was doing here. I couldn't remember anything...

As I floated through the black space, I tried to recall what had happened. I could start with making sure I was still me..

"You are Mina Mongoose," I repeated to myself over and over again, hammering the thought into my brain. "You are an 18 year old pop-star who works part time as a freedom fighter..." that was it. Freedom Fighter.. evil... Tails..

TAILS! 

Suddenly I started struggling with myself, freaking out. It was all coming back to me now. My boyfriend was Tails, and he was in the hospital. He was possessed by a dark soul.. trying to take control.. I was watching over him when I..

Something.. no, someone.. had grabbed me from behind. After that, I winded up here.

I started trying to swim my way through blank space, trying to find a way out. I had to get out of this place, back to Mobius, back to Tails..

"Mina.."

I perked up as I heard my name being called faintly in the distance, swimming toward the sound. It had to be him, it had to be Tails. He was here with me, waiting for me to wake up so he could hug me and tell me that he was so happy I was okay..

Everything started to fade away. My vision went blurry as I slowly drifted out of this dream.

 _I am coming, Tails_ , I thought to myself, closing my eyes and letting myself be pulled from the dream.

As I slowly drifted back into consciousness, I could feel weight on my arms and around my waist. What could that be? …

I slowly opened my eyes to reveal a blurred figure kneeling in front of me. _Tails. Thank God you are here.._

"She is waking up."

Something seemed... off about the voice that spoke. It sounded familiar... but it wasn't the voice I longed for.

No.. this was different. This voice was harsh.. bitter.. and it caused a pain deep in my stomach as it all hit me.

It wasn't Tails kneeling in front of me.

It was the one person I had never wanted to see again in my life.

My eyes flew open, and, sure enough it was.

He smiled his disgusting evil grin when I looked at him.

"Why, hello Mina. Sleep Well?"

Ash. It was none other than A**hat.

I grimaced at the sound of his voice. I struggled, but realized my arms and legs were bounded. I tried to speak, but my mouth was tied. I glared until Ash laughed.

"Here, Need some help?" He untied my gag slowly, and as soon as he did I let all Hell break loose.

"What are you doing here?" I spit, only amusing him more.

"Why, baby, I wanted to see you," he said, and I wanted to scream at him. "I figured I could never have you back if that.. idiot kid was around. So I decided to take back what was mine."

This made me see red. "I am not some object that belongs to you," I stated sternly. "I am not yours anymore.."

He shook his head at me, sighing. "Oh, baby" he said, running his hand down my cheek, "You will always be mine. We are meant to be.. you belong to me."

I jerked away from him, which surprised him. "Get your hands off of me," I said under my breath. "And," I growled, "Stop calling me baby."

The A**Hat just looked at me like a giant idiot. He suddenly grinned again. "Whatever you say, _Mina."_ He stood up and walked away from me for a moment. Before I could react, he came back with something in his hand.. I couldn't make out what it was in the darkness.

"I made a little.. bargain with a few.. friends." He was grinning down at me, and I couldn't help but worry about what he meant by that.

Before I could ask, a shadow joined Ash. The creature looked familiar once again..

"Mina Mongoose," the dark voice spoke. There it was... the same voice as the thing haunting Tails.

The voice continued to speak. "After we had discovered that you share a very close soul bond with the Fox we have been.. "Studying", I decided to make a trade with this.. Ash character. He was to fetch you and bring you to me, alive. In return, he would be released from this world and have co-control over our minions in result of the master plan."

As I listened, chills ran down my spine. Trade.. Minions.. Plan? What was happening here?

The shadow continued. "See, as you have a soul bond with the fox, you are very useful to the plan. The chaos that runs through your veins makes you a strong.. ally in taking over this world and everything in it. Once we have control of you and the fox, we can feed off of your chaos energy as we use your forms to kill of everyone in our way. Once we have done this, it will be easy to engulf this planet in darkness.

No. They were feeding off of our chaos energy.. and using us to murder our friends? I don't think so. I couldn't let this go on.

"You can't do this. There is too much chaos on this planet for you to handle."

The shadow's evil voice chuckled. "Ah, young Mongoose," it spoke as the shadow moved closer to me. "You know nothing about Chaos quite yet. You haven't.. experienced it.

It had a point. I had never felt chaos, nor had I had any contact with it at all.

"Dark Chaos is the fuel of your worst nightmares, the most painful tortures and deaths, and for devouring planets in darkness. It is the most powerful substance to exist in the universe!"

Suddenly, I felt nauseous. The most powerful substance.. and I had some inside me. Not to mention, so did Tails. Would we be the cause of Armageddon?

"You may be wondering why your little friend has been experiencing strange.. instances lately. The fun has already begun for our master.. he has been feeding off of the chaos energy inside the Fox. Soon, he will have complete control. Imagine the power!"

The power.. Tails would never let that thing gain full control... would he?

Was it his choice anymore?..

"Soon, we will begin with your body." This got my attention. What in the world was he talking about?

"It is my turn to get a feel for the power... and you will be my _modest_ hostess.

Oh Hell to the no. I was not letting this creep take control of _my_ body. I needed to stay myself, I needed to have control so I could save Tails... before it was too late.

 _If it wasn't already too late._

My thoughts were interrupted when Ash suddenly kneeled in front of me again. He had a sly grin on his face, and I instantly knew he was planning something. "You know," he started, taking my face in his hand, "It has been awhile... Let's see how ticked I can make you." And with that, he pulled my face to him, slowly moving closer until our lips met. He was kissing me. Where in the hell did he get the gull to do that?

I struggled to pull away, growling and jerking as he continued to kiss me. Finally, I got my leg free. I pulled it back and kicked him in the stomach as hard as I could, sending him backwards. I caught my breath as the evil shadow laughed under it's breath.

Ash struggled to pull himself up, growling. He wasn't grinning anymore.

"You are going to pay for that," he sneered.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash and a burst of light as Ash was slammed against the wall. He grunted in pain and slid down to the ground. I squinted through the dust and debris and tried to make out what was now standing in front of me. A smile spread across my face as I realized who my savior was.

Tails.

I Missed You All!

First of all, I am sorry for not uploading in so long. I got busy with many things, and never found time to update. But now, I am back and better than ever! (or at least, I hope.)

WHAT A CHAPTER! I tried to make it longer and more exciting for you all, to make up for ALL of the lost time. Hopefully I succeeded!

Thank you for not giving up hope on me. I made a promise to never abandon a story, and I will honor it!

With Mina now thrown in the mix, these last few chapters should be pretty exciting ;)

Yes, I said it, LAST FEW CHAPTERS! We are getting down to the finale!

That is depressing :(

As always, thank you for reading! Let me know what you think in the REVIEW SECTION!

Mina's Kidnapper? Tails' Reaction? Question it all!

See you all next chapter! Don't worry, it won't be such a long wait!

~Fangirling


	23. Fun and Games

Chapter 23- Fun and Games

Mina's POV

"Well, Well, Well.." The Shadow was now looking in Tails' direction, its arms crossed and an evil smile plastered on its dark face. "Look what we have here."

Tails was still, his hands clenched into fists and his eyes glaring sternly at the creature. Oh yeah, he wasn't happy.

"What do you want with Mina?" He said under his breath, just loud enough for the Shadow to catch wind of what he said.

"Ahh, the girl?" it motioned back at me with its hand. "Yes.. we found her to be _very_ useful in our plan. She has _just_ what I need."

"Care to explain?" Tails sounded impatient now. This only seemed to amuse the Shadow more.

"Sorry, Fox, but that information is classified. In due time, you will see what power I hold. But for now, all you need to know is that you and the girl are both vital pieces of the master plan."

As the creature spoke, I watched as my boyfriend's glare grew more and more angry. Even I felt chills.

"Leave Mina out of this. You can do whatever to me, but do not lay a finger on her." Tails looked to me after he spoke. "Are you okay, Mina?"

I nodded. "I am fine, they didn't hurt me. Just bonded me to this.. wall."

He answered "Okay, just stay where you are. I will take care of this and get you out of here."

Tails glanced down at his watch. I wonder what he was monitoring...

"You always come to the rescue.. ey, Fox Boy?"

Both our attentions were drawn to Ash as he pulled himself off the ground. He stood, fixing his jacket. "I guess it is a good thing that you are here.. who knows what would have happened to Mina."

He took off his glasses, cleaning the lenses on his sleeve. After he placed them back on his face and looked back up to us, I saw a gleam in his eyes.

"You know, we never got to.. finish." Ash was now walking toward me. I started struggling as he kneeled in front of me and took my face in his hand.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tails start toward me.

"Why are you struggling, my dear?" Ash questioned, moving his face closer to mine.

I heard the Shadow's voice. "Ah, Ah, Ah, Fox." I heard a clang of metal as Tails suddenly stopped in his tracks. Did that jerkface just chain him too?

Ash was now grinning. "Well, Mina," he continued, slowly moving closer. "Now that the kid is out of the way.. how about we try a little something."

Tails now sounded progressively scarier as he yelled "You better stay away from her, Ash!"

Ashhat ignored him as he continued making me uncomfortable. He brushed my cheek.

Tails tried again. "I am warning you!" I heard the clang of dark metal as he pulled.

"Don't you trust me, Mina?" Ash whispered in my ear.

"No." I started pulling my arms away as hard as I could, but it was no use. The chains wouldn't budge.

"Aww, come on.. it is only me, honey." Ash pulled back to look me in the eyes. "I am better for you than the fox will ever be."

The Shadow started laughing again, apparently amused by Tails' struggling.

The creep moved towards me once again. "Now.. let us see how long he can last without... snapping."

And with that, Ash's lips met mine. He was kissing me.. in front of my boyfriend. And he was not going to stop. I tried to push him off of me as he held my arms down and continued taunting Tails.

I listened as the ground started rumbling beneath us. Suddenly, a raging growl rang in the air as Tails lost control and busted out of his chains. I felt Ash being ripped away from me as the anger-driven monster got ahold of him.

I watched as Ash was thrown to the ground and tackled. He still had that.. stupid grin on his face.

"I knew you would- lose- control!" He spit, in between trying to keep Tails away from him.

I looked to the Shadow, who's hands were now glowing black. Dark.. Chaos?

I tried to yell a warning to Tails, but before I could get anything out the creature had him by the neck. It threw Tails backwards with a blast of dark chaos energy.

I stared in horror as he struggled to stand up. There was something keeping him from moving, something keeping him away from me...

Suddenly, Jerkface Shad-Monster was in front of Tails. "You messed with me for the last time," it said in its dark voice, and with the snap of its fingers Tails was on his knees, clutching his head and yelling in pain.

I screamed his name, twisting and pulling my arms out of the chains to reach him, but it was too late.

His eyes were glazed over.

He was under some sort of influence.

He was far too gone.

Look who is back!

Yes, I am alive~

So first off, I know you are probably tired of hearing this excuse, but things have been crazy busy. I am sorry It has been so long, but I am finally back. I told you, I would never abandon you guys!

So... this chapter. Yeah. It was pretty intense. I started writing it a month ago and kind of abandoned it, I just now came back to it and finished where I left off. With this story coming to a close soon, this is where things will get a little insane. I have my plans for the end, and I hope you all enjoy!

Thank you all for putting up with the long waits. It means a lot! ;)

I NEVER expected this story to get as big as it has. I thank you all so much for that!

As a gift for all of my loyal fans, I have decided that Tails and Mina's story can't end quite yet.

That is right, folks, this story will have a SEQUEL! Coming.. Soonish? To your local !

I won't say anymore. Stay tuned for the next chapter! Things are heating up ;)

Good day and night to you all~

-Fangirling


	24. Consequence

Chapter 24- Consequence

Tails' POV

I opened my eyes in complete darkness.

I could feel the cool floor beneath my knees, and I heard a faint voice screaming my name.

Mina.

I tried to stand, but something knocked the wind out of me and I fell back down on my stomach.

A chuckle rang in the background. Ash. I couldn't wait to get my hands on him.

Suddenly, the room lit up. I lifted my head, and was startled with what I saw.

I wasn't in the same place anymore. Everything around me was a dark purple haze. The sky blood red, the ground a pool of black. Perhaps the worst thing was that right across from me were 5 figures, tied together with a dark rope and silenced by the gags in their mouths.

My heart fell when my eyes focused on their faces.

Sonic, Amy, Shadow, Silver, and Knuckles.

It got them. And by the looks on their faces and the scratches on their faces, I could tell that it wasn't picky about who it harmed.

I tried to crawl toward them, but my path was blocked by a sudden motion.

Now standing in front of me, its black eyes looking down at me, was the Shadow.

I could hear the muffled screams of my friends as a large smile spread across the dark face of the Shadow.

"Look at you now," it said, kneeling down to my level. "You are dragging everyone you care about into your little mess of a life. Every problem that you have affects everyone around you. The hedgehogs, the echidna... and her."

I could feel the rage rising in my chest. What was it trying to say? Did it think I wanted to hurt them all?

"Look at them!" He gestured toward my struggling friends, "They wouldn't be here if you didn't drag them along to help you "save the day""

Was it joking? We were all there when it happened. It was our battle. Or.. was it? The demons didn't find any of them until I was possessed. Maybe if I hadn't been out that night... maybe if I had controled my rage better..

Sonic, Knuckles, Shadow, Amy, Silver... Mina. Would any of them be in this position if it weren't for me?

The Shadow laughed as it realized I was questioning myself and my stupid decisions. "Ah, so you are finally realizing it? If it weren't for you're irrational decisions.. your friends wouldn't be anywhere near danger. These "Freedom Fighters" would be living their lives. And the girl... she would still be happy, living her good little life with her manager boyfriend."

I felt like I was going to explode in rage. "Mina wasn't happy.. he cheated on her! She would still be in pain... it destroyed her! He didn't deserve her-"

"Shut UP!" The Shadow jolted me with a bolt of dark energy. It coursed through my body, leaving a searing pain all the way through.

It looked amused. "Good. Now that you are quiet, we can.. have a little fun."

I watched as the Shadow snapped its fingers and caused my friends to disappear. Everything went completely dark, and I felt like I was falling. I hit the ground face first.

Slowly pulling my face out of the ground, I looked up to see a dark figure standing in front of me. I tried to focus on its face, and I realized what I was looking at.

I yelled out to her.

"Mina!"

She didn't move. Her head was down, her eyes hidden by her hair. Her hands were clenched into fists, and she was frowning.

"Mina?" I asked again, worried. Still no answer.

I pulled myself off of the ground. When I was sure that I could stand, I started quickly toward her. I had to see her. I had to.

When I neared her, her voice startled me. Loud and stern, she said "Stop."

I stopped in my tracks, staring at her. "A-are you okay, Mina?"

She slowly lifted her head to look at me. My heart dropped when I finally got a good look at her.

Her eyes were all white and empty. There were scratches covering her face, some of them bleeding. Her clothes were torn and blood stained.

"Oh my God.." I reached out to touch her, but she shook her head and pushed my hand away.

"Please, get away.. It is too late."

This confused me. Too late? What was she saying?

"Too late for what, Mina? What happened to you?" I watched as she opened her mouth to speak, then shut it again. I looked down, it was too hard to see her this way.

"They got me."

This sent chills down my spine. I looked back up at her, wanting an answer.

She understood, as she continued with "It was the only way. The only way to end this."

Tears streamed down her face. My own eyes burned. What in the Hell was that evil idiot thinking? Mina had nothing to do with this, she didn't deserve this. Why use her like a little... tool?

I felt her hand on mine. I squeezed it and looked into her emotionless eyes.

Suddenly, she pulled away again. "You have to go," she said, and my eyes widened.

"What?!" I exclaimed, now upset. "I am not leaving you."

She shook her head rapidly. More tears were now flowing from her eyes. "Please... they are coming. They are coming, and they want to-"

She was interrupted when we both were thrown backwards by a sudden force. I heard the familiar sinister chuckle as I looked up to see Mina, standing with her back facing me. In front of her was the Shadow, with a demonic grin on its face. Before I could react, the demon struck her in the chest with a blast of energy. All I could hear was her horrid scream as she slowly fell to her knees.

I screamed her name as I jumped toward the Shadow, but it dissapeared into thin air, leaving me and Mina alone. I rushed to her, and caught her in my arms. She was shaking, her eyes now normal and wide.

I held her tight and whispered to her, trying to calm her and myself down. "It will be okay, I've got you Mina, I've got you.." She was taking sharp breaths. She looked at me and whispered "Tails- I.."

As a single tear rolled down her face, she dissapeared into a black dust. I was shocked as I watched her ashes float into space.

Suddenly, I was falling again. I hit the ground. I couldn't bring myself to open my eyes, or even move.

A familiar voice cried out "Tails!" and my eyes flew open. Was it my imagination?

I was in the prison room again. Ash and the Shadow were in front of me, but to my pleasure, I spotted Mina behind them.

Thank God. She was alive. It was all just a sick nightmare.

"Oh Tails, you are okay! Thank Goodness!"

The Shadow told her to shut up, and then it kneeled in front of me again. "Enjoy the show?" it asked, a look of amusement spreading across its face. It took everything I had to not pop it in the face. It was lucky Mina was okay at the moment. Sure, it was a mad demon-soul from Hell, but I had my own Hell just screaming to get out. I wasn't going to stand by and pretend that there wasn't a literal monster inside me.

It stood and stepped away from me, heading toward Mina. "Well, I've had enough fun with you. It is time to get on with this, I have work to finish."

I watched as the monster grabbed Mina by the arm and ripped her out of her chains.

"Leave her alone!" I yelled, ready to rip myself from my bounds.

Now holding her in front of itself, It was looking at Ash. "Make sure the fox doesn't cause trouble."

Ash nodded, walking over to stand beside me. He smirked and dug his foot into my back. I winced, memories of that night popping into my head.

The Shadow was now holding both of Mina's arms, staring into her eyes. "One.. more... soul." Its voice was now deeper, darker.

"It is all I need.. to finally be strong enough. I will finally be able to take over this miserable planet!"

Its eyes were glowing white. "Your soul... will be the final... OFFERING!"

With this, the Shadow's mouth was like a vortex. Mina was screaming as she was clutching on to her own life as the monster that held her inhaled with all of its force.

The next thing I knew, I was out of my chains, standing. Ash went to punch me in the face, but I stopped his hand with mine and threw him out of my way. I jumped at the Shadow, smacking into it with all of my force. Mina fell out of its hands to the ground, gasping for air as I wrestled with the Shadow. It screamed in anger as I held it down. The next second, it was gone.

I stood, shaking off my rage. Right now, I had to take care of Mina. I rushed over to help her up. "Are you okay?" I asked, holding her. She nodded, looking into my eyes. "I am now," she whispered with a small smile. Despite my anger, I couldn't help but smile back. She was here, in my arms. She was okay.

With a bright flash of light, the Shadow was back. It was now in front of us, and I pushed Mina behind me.

"Always.. always, you are getting in my way." Its voice sounded more enraged than ever. "I have been working to free us for too long... we need this.. we need to get out of the Hellhole known as the dark world!" Its hands were engulfed in dark flames.

"I, Alyndus, king of the dark souls.. I made a promise. To feed on souls.. to become strong enough for darkness to take over this planet! Then, we will be free. No longer will be be imprisoned in torture.. we will have a planet to ourselves to prosper! And the only barrier between me and that freedom.."

Its eyes were ablaze.

"The only thing slowing me down.. is you, Fox. But have you forgotten? You are hosting one of us. Yes... a dark soul, inside your very own body. Soon enough, it will feed on you. It will overtake you... and you will be one of us. You will lose control of yourself.. you will be a tortured soul. You will be.. your own demise."

Mina looked up at me. I could feel her grip tighten on my arm, I could feel her worried gaze burning into the back of my head.

It would overtake me. If I didn't stop this soon, if I didn't find a way to send these souls to their rest..

I would become one of them. I would be a danger to my loved ones.

 _I would be my own demise._

Everything was silent for a moment. All I could hear was my own heartbeat. It sounded... weaker. Slower. Quieter. As if my heart were... dying.

Was the dark soul inside me already halfway in control?

I had to stop them. I had to save Mobius. I had to save...

Mina.

But how..?

This was the question. How? What force would be enough to overcome dark souls, to send them away to their final place of rest? To calm the rage, to end the suffering, to light the darkness?

And then. It hit me.

Light the darkness...Chaos.. would it overcome dark chaos?

If a pure chaos soul were to give itself to overcome a dark chaos soul in a host, wouldn't every soul ridden with dark chaos react to help stop the chaos?

That would mean every dark soul would be in the same host.. and be overcome by the light.

That was it! All we needed was a pure chaos soul..

Sacrifice. That was the answer.

And now I knew just what to do.

Heya everyone! This may have been the longest chapter I have ever written!

What was this.. like... 3 chapters in one? Oh well, a little bonus for all of you dedicated fans!

Now we are getting somewhere. What with the name of the dark soul being confirmed as Alyndus (That way I don't have to type "The Shadow" anymore, Bleh), and Tails devising a plan to stop the dark souls before it overtook him and ended the war, the story can smoothly progress into an ending!

And what about that vision Tails saw of Mina? Just a "sick nightmare" or possibly a look into the future?

How about you stay tuned and see for yourself? ;)

I won't say too much else, other than there are only less than 5 chapters left of this story. For those of you that read these, however, know that there is going to be a sequel! So don't worry, Tails and Mina's story isn't over quite yet!

As always, any questions/thoughts/feedback can be given through comments or Pms! And just a little side note, as people keep asking, I DO NOT ROLEPLAY! Thank you, just had to make that clear.

Thank you, as always, for reading. Your comments, and your time spent on reading this fic, mean a LOT to me!

Nice day to all, until next chapter~!

-Fangirling


	25. Everything and Nothing

Chapter 25- Everything and Nothing

Tails' POV

"I'll make you a deal, Fox."

I looked up at Alyndus. A deal? What kind of deal would this demon be willing to make?

"Yes, I know. Surprising. A dark soul, wanting to make a deal with a mortal soul. But, if it means moving things along faster, I am willing to make a trade.

This made me uneasy. I couldn't imagine that a dark-hearted murderer would keep its word.. but what if this was my chance to carry out my plan? I decided to test the waters.

"Alright, Alyndus. What is this.. deal?"

I felt Mina shift behind me. I knew she was on edge, just as I was.

Alyndus crossed his arms and looked down at me, laughing evilly. "Well, well. So you are willing to trust my word. Well then, here it is. I will allow the girl to go, back to her home planet, away from all of this. I will also call back all of my armies and flee from Mobius, leave it in peace. They can have their weak and defenseless planet. We will leave it all alone... _if you join me._

I froze. He would leave Mobius alone, allow Mina to go back home.. if I joined him. If I became.. a cold blooded killer.

On the other hand, it would mean the end of all of this. It would mean the safety of all of Mobius.

It would mean the safety of... Mina.

And that was something I could not pass up.

I took a minute to collect my thoughts, and it hit me. If I took the deal, it would give me a chance to connect with Alyndus. It would give me a chance to take in his soul.

 _I would finally be able to stop all of this._

This was it, I had to take my chances.

I heard Mina's voice. "Listen to that idiot, trying to trick you into becoming one of them. Don't feel obligated, Tails. I will be fine. Mobius is fine. We will end this, just keep a level head."

She was right, but this wasn't the only reason I wanted to do this. And that is why, I had to say..

"Okay. I will do it."

Alyndus grinned. "Yesss... Yes!"

I heard Mina gasp. "What are you doing?! Tails?!"

I took a deep breath and turned around to face her. "Mina, listen." I put my hand on hers, looking into her eyes. "I know that this doesn't look good. You have to trust me.

I saw the worry and fear in her eyes. Squeezing her hand, I moved toward her and kissed her on the cheek. I whispered into her ear "I have a plan. I will end all of this."

After pulling away, I saw the confusion in her eyes. "W-what do you mean, a plan? How will you.."

She trailed off. Standing up, I started toward Alyndus. I turned and smiled at her.

"Trust me."

And with those words, I was now standing in front of the Almighty Dark King himself. I readied myself and said "Alright, let's get this over with. First, I want to see you call off your armies. And secondly.. I want you to let Mina go _**now."**_ I don't want you pulling any of your.. tricks.

Alyndus chuckled at this. "Okay, whatever you say. I will call off my armies and then send the girl back home." And with this, he backed up. Stretching out his arms and putting his head up, he started chanting. He was using some kind of language foreign to our world.. I supposed it was some kind of Dark World tongue.

A dark fire started around him, its black flames engulfing everything around him, including me. His rambling chant ended, and he was now laughing. "Did you really think that I would give up so easily?" His voice boomed, louder and more vitriolic than ever.

My heart fell. He really did go back on what he said. I knew that he wouldn't give in so easily..

"But.."

I stopped. _But.._

There was something else.

"I am a soul of my word. I did call off my fleets.. but they are not leaving Mobius. They are staying where they are, and if any of those weak inhabitants try anything.."

The fire grew, spreading to the ground and around my feet. I looked around, trying to see Mina, but the flames blocked my view. If he touched her...

"What about Mina? Did you allow her to leave?" I was growling now. I had to give everything to not let my rage get the best of me.

"Oh, the girl.. well." Alyndus was now pulling the flames back, bit-by-bit. The ground was now cooling off.

"She has no use for me. So.. I opened a time-rift to allow her to go back to Mobius. I must admit, she puts up a good fight.. hopefully she is smart enough to not try anything stupid to save you."

Thank God, she was safe. She was on her way home.. and as long as she didn't get on the wrong side of the evil, she would be okay. I was hoping that she would just wait for me there.."

"Now, I held up my end. So, what do you say? Will you... join me?"

Alyndus held out his hand. I knew that this was my chance, my time to turn everything around. I started toward him, slowly.

All I had to do was take his hand. I would be able to connect with his soul, and use the chaos inside me to bring his soul into my body. Once I succeeded, I would summon the chaos emeralds. Using their power, I would be able to overcome the evil and send their souls back to where they belonged.

And then, I realized the one flaw with this plan.

The amount of chaos I would need to overcome the dark souls.. it would be.. too much.

Not even Sonic or Shadow could take in that much chaos energy.. this would kill me.

 _You have to do this. If you don't succeed, Mobius will be overridden with evil souls. The souls of innocents would be devoured.. the Freedom Fighters would either be killed or bonded into eternal slavery.._

 _and Mina... she would be overtaken by a dark soul. She would live in agony.._

I now realized that I had no choice. I had to do this, there was no other way.

And what is the life of one compared to the life of millions?

"Yes." I said, and reached out my hand. I took the hand of Alyndus, and the flames erupted around us. Alyndus' grin turned to an evil smirk that spread across the entirety of his face.

After that, everything went dark. I felt pain scorching the whole inside of my body and out as the dark soul tore through me. I yelled out in pain as the fire burned. I heard a familiar scream as someone grabbed my arm.

Next thing I knew, I was surrounded by only white. I heard nothing, felt nothing, said nothing. What was happening.. was I.. dead?

Suddenly, I heard a small voice, and I whipped around. There, standing in front of me, was Mina.

"M-Mina?" I whispered, painfully.

She was supposed to be on her way home. She was supposed to be away from this.

 _She was supposed to be safe._

And now she was here, in whatever limbo this was, standing by my side.

Mina looked into my eyes. "Tails.. I couldn't just stand there and watch you give yourself away. Whatever you are doing, I am doing with you. If you are going down to save our planet.. then so am I."

This made my heart skip a few beats. I felt hopeless- there was probably no way to convince her to leave. Once Mina had her mind set on something, there was no changing it.

She took a step toward me. "What were you planning, Tails?"

I swallowed, trying to rid of the lump in my throat. I knew she wasn't going to approve of my plan, but I couldn't lie to her.

"I.. was going to take his soul into my body. With both Alyndus and the dark soul already inside me, I would have two of the souls' lifelines. Light chaos energy is the only thing in this world that can overtake them... which is why I haven't been overtaken by the dark soul yet.

Mina had stopped in her tracks, listening. "So you are saying that.. you, as their host, would be able to kill them from the inside?

I shook my head. "Not kill them, exactly.. but I would be able to send them to their final resting place,where they couldn't escape. But the chaos energy in me is not enough... I would need more. Which is why.. I was going to take in the energy of all of the chaos emeralds as well.

Mina put her hands over her mouth. Her voice came out muffled. "Tails.. there is no way your body could stand that much chaos. That... that would... kill you."

I put my head down. "Yes.. it would probably kill me. That is why.. I couldn't tell you what I had in mind. I knew you would be against it, and I didn't want you putting yourself in danger."

Her voice sounded determined with her next words. "I am sorry, but that isn't happening. I am not going to stand by and watch while you give yourself up to save the world. As I said.. anywhere you go, I'm going. And if you are in danger of dying, then..."

She was now in front of me, her hand in mine. She finished with "Then I am going to stand here by your side through it all. Maybe with two hosts in one, the burden of the extra chaos won't be as strong and dangerous. Maybe.. we can survive this."

It was a long shot. She was right, there was a minimal chance we could both survive. What about that other half chance, the chance that we could both die? Or even.. that one of us could die. What if one of us failed.. and became one of them?

All I knew was that if something did happen, I would make sure that it would be me. If I was overtaken, I had my ways of making sure I never caused harm to anyone.

My thoughts were interrupted when Mina squeezed my hand. "And Tails, even if something bad does happen.. I will never leave you. I will always be here.. backing you up, holding your hand, supporting you.. never forget that."

I looked up at her, into her eyes. I could feel my own burning, as a single tear rolled down her cheek. She was smiling, her eyes sparkling in the misty light.

"Thank you, Mina.. and know that I will do the same for you. You can always count on me to be there for you. I am never letting you go.. I am never leaving your side again."

She wiped her eyes with the back of her arm, sniffing. "Thank you..." she whispered. And then her eyes looked nervous. "Tails, I have something I need to tell you, just in case something happens and I don't get the chance."

My heart was beating faster than ever now. I had something to tell her too.. before it was too late. Something she needed to know.. something I needed her to know.

"Of course.. anything." I smiled.

"Okay.." she took a deep breath. "Here we go. Ever since I first realized I had feelings for you, everything has seemed so much.. brighter. The hole I had inside me for so long, even with Ash... it finally felt complete, as if you were the piece of a puzzle that I had spent my whole life trying to solve. God, I hate puzzles."

I couldn't help but laugh, and she joined me. Even though my heart was about to burst out of my chest, I tried to keep cool. Where was this going?

"So anyway.. ever since you asked me to be your girlfriend, ever since that first kiss.. heck, ever since I first met you, you have always been so kind, sweet, caring... you have helped me through so much, made me feel bigger, better. You have made me... me. And that is something I couldn't thank you enough for. And after everything we have been through.. standing by your side, facing almost certain death hand in hand, there is something I have been thinking about for so very long, something I have finally decided is true, that I need you to know."

She was now crying again, and I could see a faint blush in her cheeks. But the smile remained.

I could feel my own eyes burning.

"Miles..Prower... I.."

Her hands were shaking inside mine, so I squeezed them to reassure her.

She took a deep breath and continued.

"I.. I love you."

With these words, my heart stopped for just a few moments. It was like everything around me, the darkness, the pain, the death... was gone. She had just said the words that I had been waiting to hear, waiting to say, for the longest time.

She loved me...

Mina Mongoose loved me, too.

The tears started streaming down my face as I answered "Oh, Mina Mongoose, I love you too."

With this, she screamed of happiness and jumped into my arms. We held each other, crying of sheer joy. This was it, I wanted this moment to last forever. But, all the greatest moments are put to an end by something. And that something was a deep, evil growl.

We seperated, still holding hands. "What was _that?_ Mina asked, frightened. I shook my head. "Sounded like Alyndus," I said. "I think.. it is time to finish this."

Mina nodded, determined. "I agree. Let's.. get this over with."

And with that, we closed our eyes and summoned the chaos emeralds. Each of the 7 powerful gems surrounded us, glowing with light and pure light energy. I opened my eyes to find that we were back in the prison room, now above Alyndus and Ash.

"What... what.. is.. THIS?!" Alyndus yelled in rage. "What is HAPPENING! You are supposed to be.. gone... AND YOU, FOX! YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE ONE..OF..US!"

I looked down upon the dark soul. "I am done with you, and this angry thing inside of me. I am ready to send you back to where.. you.. BELONG!"

And with that, I chanted the words I had learned from Alyndus himself: The Reverse Possession Chant. I heard Alyndus scream as his soul was pulled off of the ground and toward me. As the soul entered through my chest, I yelled in pain. It felt like he was tearing through my body.. well, he probably was.

I looked over at Mina. "Ready?!" I asked, and she nodded. "Ready!" she yelled back. We closed our eyes, calling on the emeralds. I felt the souls fighting to get out as the emeralds engulfed us in light. The power was now shooting into both the bodies of me and Mina. Gritting my teeth, I was able to stand the pain. And then it hit me.

I had to do something. Mina was alone right now, one body and one soul. The power would break her faster than it would me.

I had an idea. It felt crazy, but if it worked.. it would save her.

I pulled her toward me. "Mina!" I yelled, and she looked up at me. "I have an idea- just trust me, okay?"

She yelled "okay!" and pulled me into her, wrapping her arms around me. I held her close and tight. As long as I held on, the chaos would absorb into me. Mina would be okay..

"This is it, Mina!" Get ready!"

I felt the final burst of energy and knew this was my last chance to say goodbye. "Mina, I love you.."

She took my face in her hands. "I love you, Tails.."

And with that, our lips met.

The chaos light surrounded us, engulfing us in a power that would end it all.


	26. All I Need

Chapter 26- All I Need

Mina's POV

Here I was. Standing in the abyss, looking death straight in the face, giving myself up to save the planet from dark souls. Not to mention but yet very important that I mention, said souls like to feed off of light souls and kill innocents from the inside out.

And the worst part of it all? Not only was it me out there, screaming in agony as the power of chaos consumed all of me, but I was hand in hand with the love of my life, who I had just now gotten the chance to tell my feelings to.

Basically, this wasn't my best day.

I had never felt anything like it. The chaos energy was coursing through my veins, and it felt like I was on fire... on the inside. It also felt as if I were about to explode.

After a few seconds of this, I thought it was finally over. It was.. but something else happened. All of a sudden, I didn't _feel_ like Mina Mongoose anymore. I felt.. different. I also... heard thoughts that were not mine. Ones such as _"I need to protect her"_ and _"She can't pay for this"_ and my oh so personal favorite, _"I love you, Mina.. goodbye."_ Okay, so it was my favorite, all except that last word.

 _Goodbye..._ as if I weren't going to see him ever again.

That scared me.

My thoughts were put to a sudden screeching stop as I heard the pained cries of the evil souls being sucked out of Tails' body and into the darkness. So his plan was working.. what did this mean for us?

And then, everything stopped.

Silence.. no screaming, no rush of wind as the chaos emeralds did their thing..

Nothing.

Darkness. I could neither feel, nor hear, nor see..

Was it over?

My mind instantly thought the worst- My heart had stopped, something possessed me on its way out, I smacked into the ground and blacked out forever..

Okay, no one ever called me Sunshine and Rainbows. I had a knack for thinking of the most morbid scenarios.

The next think I knew, I heard a high-pitched ringing. _Just make it stop,_ I thought to myself. I started regaining feeling, and pain was now shooting up from my feet to my head. Honestly, I just wanted the pain to end. I wanted to sleep.. be left alone.

I opened my eyes slowly. First, I saw a bright light, and I knew what I was in for. But that soon changed as I started becoming aware of my surroundings. I was lying on the cold, hard cement of a street. I saw... rooftops. I saw people.. and I saw the giant, flashing chili-dog sign hanging on the window of Chuck's restaurant.

I was home.

And then, it hit me. _Tails!_

I scurried frantically up off the ground despite my pain. Beside me was Tails, lying on the ground. I ran over to him, dropping to me knees beside him. "Tails?" I asked, feeling his chest. There was a faint heartbeat, but barely enough to keep him alive for long.

"Tails, honey? It's me, Mina. Please, come back to me." I took his hand, silently praying that he would feel me there.

Sure enough, his eyes slowly opened. I was met by his gaze, first confused and then relieved. "M-Mina?" he asked, squeezing my hand lightly. "Did.. did we do it? Is.. it gone? Are we.."

My eyes welled up with tears. "We did it.. we did. The souls are back where they belong, and yes.."

My face was now wet, but my smile only grew. "We are alive," I stated, wiping away my tear with the back of my arm."

A smile spread across his face. "We.. did it.. we saved Mobius.. and we... _survived."_

I couldn't hold them for any longer, as they were now streaming down my face. "Yes!" I exclaimed, wrapping my arms around him. He hugged me back, crying tears of happiness into my shoulder. We stayed like that for a few minutes, both of us silently thanking whatever force allowed for us to get through this.

I was thankful to be in his arms again.

I pulled away slightly, holding on to him as I looked into his eyes. "I love you," I said, leaning in and kissing him.

"Eh-hem, sorry to interrupt.."

We quickly pulled away, both our heads looking over to see Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, Shadow and Silver all standing together.

"Guys!" I exclaimed, rushing over to meet them. "I am so glad you all are okay!"

"Thanks.. it got a bit rough out there, but.." Sonic winked and allowed Amy to finish.

"We knew we could count on you two to save the day!" She exclaimed, hugging me and then running over to Tails.

Everyone followed suit, gathering around him. We all talked about everything, all the pain, all the tears, all the fear... but we all agreed that it was great to be home.

After we had helped some of the villagers who were still struggling to comprehend the whole mess and cleaned up the town a bit, we all headed back to the Freedom HQ. We decided to spend the day together, to catch up and support each other after everything that had happened.

Back at HQ, we had all gathered around a table, talking, laughing, telling stories. Knuckles had ordered a pizza, which made for even more of a party.

I couldn't help but worry about Tails, constantly looking over beside me to make sure he was doing okay. I was surprised- after having something sinister inside him for so long and dealing with that much chaos, he seemed pretty normal. But that was good.

Later that night, after everyone had decided to get some sleep, I headed out to the balcony for some thinking time. Sitting alone on the edge, I really focused on everything that had happened lately. Some bad things, some good.

I heard footsteps behind me, and when they stopped I couldn't help but look back. Tails stood there, watching over me. "Mind if I join you?" he asked, and I laughed. "Of course not, silly," I said, scooting over and patting the space beside me.

He sat down at my side. We sat there in silence for awhile, looking up at the stars. I now realized how bright they were tonight.. how beautiful.

I felt a hand on mine. I looked over to see him smiling at me, his eyes illuminated by the light of the diamonds in the sky. I got lost in the baby blue sea, feeling calmer than I had in a while.

And then I remembered what I had wanted to ask him about. "So, when we used the chaos, something... kind of different happened. I felt like we were... one being. And.. I could _hear your thoughts._ Was that supposed to happen?

Tails scratched the back of his head, looking nervous. "Yeah... haha.. about that... um.. the chaos actually drove our souls to merge for just a few seconds. We were one being.. feeling the same pain and hearing the same thoughts.

I couldn't believe it. Our souls actually.. merged? It sounded unrealistic, but his eyes reassured me that this was, indeed, the truth. I guess that the truth can be more crazy than the imaginary.

"Wow.." was all I managed to say. It hit me like a gust of wind. He and I were one..

I could have sworn, that at that moment, I heard him say "I know, right?", but his mouth never moved.

Maybe my imagination.

"You okay, Mina? Things have been pretty insane lately.."

I nodded. He was right, this had definitely been the most crazy day of my life. Surprisingly, though, now that it was over... I felt good. Everyone was alive and pretty well, our planet was still intact..

and I had the one that I loved right here by my side. And hey, we were alone.

I cuddled up next to him and layed my head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around me, leaning his head against mine.

"Miles, you still owe me a first date," I said, and he laughed softly.

"I reckon I do, Mina. And only the best. Where would you like to go?"

I told him the truth.

"Honestly, I don't really care. We could do anything in the world, I just want some time with you. And not as we are about to die, but as a happy and peaceful day all to us."

He squeezed my shoulder. "You know what, I agree one-hundred percent," he said. "We need that. Something special... hmm.."

And then he shot up. "I have the perfect idea of how to start it off," he said, and he stood, pulling me gently with him. He led me to his garage, where he opened the doors to reveal his plane. "We'll need to take this," he told me, climbing in. I followed suit, strapping myself in the passenger seat behind him. I didn't know what he was planning, but, knowing Tails, I had a feeling it would be something wonderfully beautiful.

Tails' POV

I started the engines, and got ready for take off. I knew I could get us closer to the bright stars in the sky.. and I also knew that it was one of Mina's dreams to sing, surrounded by a sky full of light. That was exactly what I was going to give to her.

I flew the plane out of the garage, heading for the sky. "Where are we going, Tails?" asked Mina's voice over the engines. "You'll see," I said back.

We were getting closer and closer to the stars, and I decided to stop where we were, as I didn't want to get too close.

With the plane on autopilot, I looked back to Mina. Her expression was full of surprise and confusion. "Tails, what are we.."?

I was grinning. "Remember when you told me you had always dreamed of singing with the stars, since you were a young girl? Well, now is your chance."

Her jaw dropped. "Oh-my-gosh Tails!" She stumbled out of her seat, and I helped her to the wing. She wrapped her arms around my neck. "You-are-the-best!"

I kissed her on the top of the head. "And so are you, now, get out there Pop-Star!"

She backed up, blushing a bit. "O-okay, here I go." She took a deep breath and started to sing.

I was taken aback as I realized I had never heard the song before. The lyrics, they all sounded so.. new.

Had she just written this?

Mina's beautiful voice flowed throughout and between the stars, sounding like the song of an angel from up in the sky. I stayed back, watching her spin around as she painted the perfect harmony. She looked so.. happy. She was illuminated by the starlight, outlining her perfect movements as she performed.

Once she finished the song, she looked back at me, breathing heavily but grinning. "How did I do?" she asked, her voice tired.

I walked over to the edge of the plane, wrapping my arms around her. "That was the most.. heartfelt and beautiful performance I have ever seen. Even in the sky, you are in the spotlight, my beautiful star."

She giggled, her face going red. "So... cheesy," she grinned, hugging me tightly. "But I love it. Thank you."

We stayed like that for awhile, holding each other and looking at the stars.

All I knew was that I was grateful for her. After so long, I had finally had the chance to show her how I felt, and she ended up feeling the same for me.

And even after everything we had been through, she trusted me, she loved me, and she never left my side.

She knew me.

And that was all that I needed.

 _And that, my lovelies, was the END!_

 _Wow, it truly was a long run. I never expected this story to get big.. and I thank all who read this and supported me, and for making this happen._

 _Thank you for the comments, the feedback.. writing this story has helped me grow as a writer._

 _And, thank you to the dedicated fans who stuck with me till the end, even after my month long hiatuses. You people are true heroes!_

 _And now, for this story. I really enjoyed writing it, being in the shoes of both Tails and Mina and their journey through friendship, love, and hardships. I loved writing the cute interactions between the two- as we never got to see that in anything canon._

 _I am glad I had the chance to share my Mina and Tails story with many readers, though._

 _This may be the end of this fic, but don't fret! Although this went out (hopefully) with a bang.._

 _THE SEQUEL IS ON ITS WAY!_

 _Be on the lookout for it, as I am hoping to have it up in the next few days! Woo hoo, a sequel._

 _Anyone, I have not much else to say. Please, tell me what you thought of this ending, and this Fic!_

 _Comments/Feedback/Questions are all still excepted, even by newcomers!_

 _Thank you to everyone who read this and stuck around until the end. I hope you will head on over to the second installment!_

 _It was fun. Goodnight all~_

 _-Fangirling_


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